


Like Real People Do

by Ohshitmyship



Category: BnHA, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: AU, Angst with a Happy Ending, Based off that one Hozier song, Fantasy AU, Happy Ending, M/M, Witch AU, kinda creepy, this is a very unique thing so i dont think there's a specific tag for this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-14
Updated: 2019-09-03
Packaged: 2019-10-10 02:04:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 29
Words: 43,439
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17416928
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ohshitmyship/pseuds/Ohshitmyship
Summary: When he is rescued by a strange but beautiful man called Katsuki, who names him Red, he remembers nothing. All that Red knows is that he was underground, Katsuki dug him up, housed him, and nursed him back to health. He also knows that Katsuki knew him before Red lost his memory, but he won't tell him much. Red understands, but he is curious as to who he is, and desperate to find out. As he starts falling for Katsuki, he begins to piece together his past, like why Katsuki won't give him his real name, why Red is so pale, and why they live in the middle of the woods.





	1. Waking Up

**Author's Note:**

> it's 2 am and I had to write down this idea before I forgot. I have class in 7 hours. RIP.
> 
> Happy Reading!

The first thing he remembered was the moon.

Well, truthfully the very first thing he remembered was darkness, but that stretches on for an eternity until he first saw the moon.

His eyes were finally uncovered and he saw the silver sphere, high above him in the sky, large and at its fullest. It was beautiful.

Almost as beautiful as the man who came into his sight, blocking the moon, its light catching his blond spiky hair, making him look like he had a halo.

“Don’t worry, I’ll get you out,” he said, and left his vision.

 _Get me out? Get me out of what?_ When he tried to move his head, he found that he couldn’t. Was that normal? He drifted off before he could find out.

 

* * *

 

When he woke up again, the first thing he noticed was that it was cold. Very, very cold. There was nothing on his skin, and his vision was less hindered now – he could see he was outside, in a forest, it looked like. He went to lift his head, but the beautiful man appeared again, placing a very warm hand on his forehead and gently pushing him down.

“You don’t want to see, trust me. Just look at the sky, you’ll sleep soon enough.”

He decided to trust this strange man and looked back up at the beautiful moon and the many stars. So many. He started to count them. Somewhere around 77, he fell asleep.

 

* * *

 

 

The third time he woke up, he found that he was in the opposite position as last time. He was warm, unlike before, covered in what seems to be a comfy blanket. He was also looking up at a wooden ceiling with old wood beams. He was inside, and he was very comfortable.

He smelled something good, like meat cooking, and realized he was hungry. Hoping to rectify this, he sat up, and was immediately dizzy.

He put a hand on his head, taking a few deep breaths. It soon faded, and he pulled his hand away. It felt kinda cold, and he was very pale. He then had the sudden realization that he had no idea what he looked like, and he looked around the room.

It was small, and the walls were wood logs. He was in a large bed with green and orange blankets, with two nightstands on each side. On his side was a leatherbound book with a metal clasp, as well as a clock/ phone charger. On the other side was another similar clock, some rocks, a red and orange stick, and an empty picture frame.

Across from the bed there was a large dresser with several drawers, a wardrobe that had the same colour wood as the dresser and nightstands stood in the corner, closed. Beside that was a full-length mirror, next to a closed door. On the other side of the room was a door left ajar, leading out to a larger room. But he was interested in the mirror.

Slowly – not wanting to become dizzy again – he got out of bed and walked over to the mirror, using the bedposts as support.

When he stood in front of the mirror, he found it slightly odd that he did not recognize the person in front of him.

About in his twenties, with shaggy, bright red hair. He had red eyes, with a small scar over the right one.

He was only wearing grey jogging pants, and noticed that he was well-built. He also noticed several large scars on his abdomen, one right over his heart. They stood out starkly on his pale, pale skin. He reached a hand up to touch the one by his heart, finding it rough.

“Ah, I was just coming to wake you up.”

He turned around to see the man from before. As he did so a little too quickly, he got dizzy and stumbled.

Immediately, the man was there, grabbing his waist and shoulder, “Hey, watch it dumbass, you’re still really weak.”

“Ah, sorry,” he said with a small laugh, blushing a little at how close the other man was standing.

“S’alright, here, let’s get you back on the bed.” The man lead him to the edge of the bed where he sat down, and finally got a good look at his host.

He looked about the same age, with wild blond hair that looked like an explosion and piercing red eyes. He frowned and something told him he always looked like that. He wore a black tee shirt with a skull print on it, and loose black pants with some black slippers. He slouched a bit, but he also looked very built and his short sleeves showed off thick arms.

“How’re you feeling?” The man asked, eyeing him up and down.

“Dizzy,” he admitted, “And...confused. I don’t remember anything, like who you are, where I am, how I got here, even who I am. Do you know?”

The man nodded, “I’m called Katsuki, I call you Red, cuz of the hair. This is my house, and I brought you here.”

“Oh. Well, thank you.” He, uh, apparently _Red,_ wanted to ask more questions, so many, like if Red was his real name, or how he knew Katsuki, or why Katsuki helped him, or anything really, but then his stomach growled loudly.

“C’mon, Red,” Katsuki said with a grin, putting an arm around Red’s waist, “Let’s get you some breakfast.”

Katsuki helped Red into the main part of the house, which had a large living room with comfy green couches and a tv, as well as a coffee table. In the corner was a decent sized kitchen, where meat sizzled in a pan on the stove. Katsuki lead Red to the counter around the kitchen and sat him in one of the two tall, wooden stools there, then went to the stove. He took off the pan and scooped the contents onto two plates, grabbed cutlery, put one plate in front of Red, and sat down.

“Dig in,” he said.

“Happily,” Red replied as he grabbed a fork from Katsuki and dug into the eggs, sausage, and bacon, “Mmm, this is good!”

Katsuki smiled and ate his own food, the two falling into silence for a bit.

“What do you last remember?” Katsuki asked after some time, when Red was almost done his food.

“Darkness,” Red replied easily, “the moon, you. Waking up in the forest, then being here. That’s about it.”

Katsuki frowned, “You don’t remember _anything?”_

“I didn’t even know what I looked like before I checked myself out in the mirror,” Red admitted with a shrug, “You had to tell my name.”

“Right,” Katsuki said, picking at his leftover eggs, “Thought so. You done?”

“Hold on,” Red said, shovelling the rest of his food into his mouth before handing his empty plate to Katsuki, who chuckled.

“What?” Red asked through a mouthful of food.

“Nothing,” Katsuki said, his smile becoming sad as he took the plates to the sink, “It’s just...you haven’t changed?”

“Wait. Do you... _know_ me?” Red asked tentatively.

Katsuki tensed and didn’t look back at him, “Yes.”

“Did you know me before digging me up?”

“Yes.”

“How did I end up underground?”

"You uh, you fell in a bog. Hit your head I think."

"Oh. How did you find me?"

“I...can’t say. I’m sorry.”

“S’okay,” Red said with a shrug, “I get if you can’t tell me. I don’t think I can tell you much either, with my memory being gone and all, haha.”

Katsuki turned and Red was happy to see he was smirking. It was kinda hot.

“You always were an airhead, Red.”

  
Red grinned, “But a nice airhead?’

“The fucking nicest. I can’t begin to tell you.” Katsuki walked over to him and then suddenly hugged him tight. Red was surprised for a second, but quickly returned the embrace. He found himself pleased at the fact that he was a fair bit taller than Katsuki.

“What’s this for?” He asked.

“Just glad to have you back, Red.”

Red smiled and closed his eyes, snuggling into Katsuki’s shoulder. He didn’t know what was going on, who he was, what had happened, and a shitload of other things, but he felt comfortable with Katsuki, he felt _familiar._ And to an amnesiac, that’s the best feeling in the world.


	2. Good Morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red can't remember his dreams, except for . single name. Katsuki is acting a little weird, but mostly – Red is bored. Terribly bored.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did not expect this to get as popular as it had lol. Soooooo here's nother chapter. I have an idea as to where I'm going with this. Feel free to comment!!!
> 
> Happy reading!!

_ “Kirishima,” the man above him drawls. He is lean and mean and ugly.  Black wiry hair. A red bandana around his eyes. Knives. So many knives. He is holding something small and square. It is dark They are in an alley. _

_ “Look man,” he says, exasperated, “You’ve got my wallet, take what you want.” _

_ “I’m not really that interested in the money,” the man says, chucking the wallet behind him. He grins, “Kirishima Eijirou, you’re exactly who I’m looking for.” _

_ “I don’t understand,” he says.Panic, “I-I don’t know you.” _

_ “Sure, you do. Stain. The Hero Killer.” _

_ Flashes of news – a man calling himself Stain. Cops murdered in the street. _

_ “I’m no cop.” _

_ “I know.” The man comes closer, “But I also know what cops are involved with. I don’t usually do this, but Bakugou is a special case.” _

_ His heart stopped beating, “What’re you going to do to him?” _

_ “Nothing yet.” A shrug, “Gotta make him do something stupid first. In order for me to do that, I have to kill you. Nothing personal, you’ve just gotten yourself involved with the wrong shrine keeper, Mr. Kirishima.” _

_ The man lunges forward, knife in hand – _

Red awoke with a jolt, breathing heavily. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, trying to recall the nightmare.

Ugh, it faded so quickly, like all the rest of his dreams. Had he been like this before being dug up?

No, focus on the dream. A name….Stain….something else…. Started with a K….Katsuki – no, that’s not right. K, K, K, K, K, K….

And just like that, the dream was gone, leaving Red with nothing but “Stain”.  He sighed and looked at the clock. 7:07. He considered going back to bed but then noticed a light was on in the main room. 

Carefully, Red crept out of bed and peeked out, seeing Katsuki in dark ripped jeans, a white loose tee with a spray paint skull design, and single black earring hanging down from his left ear. He had been wearing that a lot recently, Red noticed. He was pouring a glass of something, his back to Red.

“Hey,” he said as he came out of the bedroom, causing Katsuki to turn around. Red saw that he had some eyeliner and mascara on, “Why’re you dressed like that?”

“Oh,” Katsuki said, “I’m a photographer. Gotta go to work today, the shitheads wouldn’t let me take anymore days off to – nevermind. How’re you feeling?”

“Same,” Red said with a shrug, “Weird dreams I don’t remember, still no memories, all the fun stuff. I do remember one thing though….does the name ‘Stain’ mean anything to you?”

Katsuki stopped dead and his eyes widened and he looked scared, just for a second. But he’s back to scowling so quickly that Red thought he’d imagined it.

“How do you know that name?”

Red shrugged and sat down at the counter, opposite to Katsuki, “All I remember from my dream. Why?”

“Because,” Katsuki said slowly, searching Red’s face, “Stain is an infamous serial killer on the loose.”

“Maybe I was somehow involved with him?” Red suggested, “Maybe I found something out and he tried to have me killed, but you saved me haha. Does that mean the police’re closing in on him?”

“No. I gotta go, or I’m going to be late.” Katsuki grabbed a travel thermos and headed out the door, stopping in the entryway, “See you later Red. And remember, don’t leave the property.”

Red rolled his eyes, “Yes sir. Have a good day at work.”

Katsuki smiled and then left. Red saw him go to the small car in the driveway, get in, and leave. He stood in the window for far too long before becoming bored and moving to the kitchen. Katsuki had left him some easy cookables, because apparently Red was shit at cooking.

After refrying some waffles, Red went over to the tv and turned it on. He browsed through the movies and picked an old animated one. He had no idea what he had seen before, but his Netflix had, and he liked to rewatch what had been his favourites. It was watching them for the first time again, which not many people could say they’ve done. He tried to focus on the little joys, and the movies brought some semblance of familiarity within him. He longed for that – he was quickly growing tired of feeling lost and confused.

He looked out to the forest outside their cabin and was terribly tempted to go exploring, but he doubted he could find his way back. Besides, that Stain guy still seemed to be out there, and Red was glad he forgot his face.


	3. The Guests

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red has become familiar with his surroundings, and so, so bored. But a little bit of excitement enters his life when two guests show up unexpected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY so I went back and retconned a handful of things because I realized I fucked up but hey, the first chapter was written and posted while I was half asleep.  
> Anyways, Red was told that he was underground cuz he fell in a bog. Also He's taller than Katsuki.
> 
> Happy Reading!

After Red had finished watching his third movie, he decided he needed a change of pace.

He got up from the couch and stretched, groaning loudly. Then he slapped his hands to his side, looked around, and blew a raspberry, just to have sound.

Red wandered into the bedroom, trying to see what he could find. He eyed the wardrobe, but he had already gone through that and found that all of the clothes on the right side fit him almost perfectly, except they were just a little baggy.

He turned around and looked at the room, but it was pretty much the same it had been for the past four days. He’d checked under the bed and found some snacks and old vinyls for the record player in the main room. He’d looked in all of the drawers and found nothing all that interesting (except in the top left. The top left had left him flustered for _hours_ ). In the nightstands were old phone cases, keys, and other such junk. Absolutely nothing rang any sort of bell.

Except for the sketchbook.

When Red picked it up and looked through it for the first time, he was amazed. The drawings were _wonderful_ and bright and unique. Some of them were of dragons, or nature, or people’s faces. A few had pictures attached to them, with the art on someone’s body as a tattoo. He liked looking through it, and found that it brought a sense of familiarity, much like the feeling he got from living with Katsuki.

And towards the back, the last drawing was incomplete. Red wasn’t sure what it was, since it was just curving black lines. He wished that it was complete, and for some really annoying reason, it nagged at him. He wanted to finish it, but of course, he didn’t know how.

He sighed and put the book down, deciding that he was going to clean the kitchen, since he had literally nothing better to do.

 

* * *

 

“Red? I’m home?”

“Oh, hey!” Red cried as he heard Kastuki come in.

“Where the hell are you?”

“Bathroom!” He called out, “Hold on.” Red stood up and took off his cleaning gloves, stuffing them in his back pockets as he came out of the bathroom and into the bedroom.

“Have you been cleaning?” Katsuki asked as he dumped his bag on the bed.

“Yeah,” Red admitted, “I was bored. Not much to do all day. And I’ve already binged all my ‘watch it again’ on Netflix.”

“Fair enough,” Katsuki said, “And I wish I could help, but you gotta stay inside.”

“Why?” Red asked, “I swear I’m not tryn’a pick a fight here, but I just get so bored. Going for a walk in the woods at least would be nice, or maybe going into town.”

“I know, Red,” Katsuki said with a sigh, walking up to Red and grabbing his hands, “And I wish that I could let you or even explain, but I _can’t._ You just gotta trust me, and I know that sounds like some psycho bullshit.”

“Yeah,” Red admitted with a smile, “A random man hiding an amnesiac  away in his cabin in the woods, far from society….”

“Okay, it sounds fucking creepy when you say it like that,” Katsuki said with a smirk, “But I promise I’m not going to cut you up.”

“You wear a lot of skulls,” Red said thoughtfully, “Maybe I shouldn’t trust you.”

“Ah, shut up Red,” Kastuki said with a laugh, punching him lightly on the shoulder and backing away, “I’m gonna make dinner, you feel like anything?”

Red shrugged, “I’m in the mood for fish?”

“Always meat you’re craving,” Katsuki said, “Well, I got some fresh salmon yesterday so I can make that with some rice.”

Just then, there was a knock at the door. Katsuki tensed up.

“Don’t move,” he hissed. Red did as he was told.

There was another knock and a man’s voice called out, “Kacchan, I know you’re home! I brought over some of my mom’s dessert!”

“Shit,” Katsuki hissed, “I gotta let them in. Stay in here, and don’t make a noise, got it?”

Red trusted Katsuki, and so he nodded, going to sit on the bed. Katsuki sighed and left, shutting the door behind him. Red went to the door and listened, and heard Katsuki open the door.

“What do you want, Deku?”

“We thought we should come over,” the man’s voice from before said, “I know you think you’d rather be alone, but I think you need company. So I made some of my mom’s Sex in a Pan.”

“I helped.” A new voice. Deeper. Slower.

“Of course. Well, thanks. I’ll take the dessert and I’ll cry my eyes out over a bowl of it while watching _The Notebook._ Thanks and goodbye.”

“Kacchan, don’t be ridiculous, this is way too much, we made it to share. We’ll have dinner, the three of us. I know it won’t be the same without him but –”

“No. Take your shitty dessert and leave.”

“We won’t leave until we eat,” the second voice said, “You know he won’t let us.”

There was a pause and then Katsuki sighed, “Fine, assholes. Guess I gotta make dinner.”

Red heard the three people coming in, the front door shutting. He sighed and sat back down on the bed. He hoped they wouldn’t be there long.

 

* * *

 

An hour and a half later, Red was dying of hunger, and the two guests were still there.

He could smell the salmon cooking and he was desperately hoping that Katsuki saved him a piece. If not, he was going to riot.

Just then, he heard Guy 2 speak.

“I must use the bathroom, excuse me.”

“Yeah, whatever, Half n’ Half.”

Red realized that the only bathroom was through the bedroom. He began to panic and considered hiding under the bed, but it was too tight. He saw the wardrobe in the corner and dashed for it.

“Wait!” Katsuki cried, probably just remembering that Red was hiding in the bedroom, “Don’t go in there!”

“What? Why not?” The voice was right by the door.

“Toilet’s broken.”

“Shit, Kacchan, why didn’t you just say?” Guy 1 said with a laugh, “I can fix that for ya.”

“No, it’s gross.”

“Kacchan, please. We both know we’ve all seen worse, with your damn side hobby.”

Footsteps approached and Red wedged himself into the wardrobe between the clothes. It was tight, but he could shut the door.

No sooner had he clicked it shut when the bedroom door opened. He couldn’t see, but he could hear just fine.

“Can you please hurry, Izuku?” Guy 2 said.

“If you gotta go that bad, go in the woods,” Katsuki snapped. He sounded stressed. Red wanted him to know he was in the wardrobe, but didn’t know he could do that without letting the others know.

“Hey, where’s that spare wrench you keep around?” Guy 1 asked.

“In the wardrobe, gimme a sec.”

 _Of fucking course._ Red looked around and saw a small toolbox near his feet. If he could grab it, he could hand it to Katsuki without being noticed.

He tried to move it with his foot, but it had one of those collapsible handles, so a no-go. He heard Katsuki coming over and bent down to pick it up, but the door opened and he lost his support, tumbling out onto the floor.

He looked up and tried for a sheepish smile, “Uh, hey. What’s up?”

One of the men was halfway out of the bathroom, wore a loose shirt that said “loose shirt”, had on jeans, and unruly, curly dark hair. He had wide eyes and a sprinkling of freckles. He was adorable, but also totally ripped, as seen by his arms. His jaw was on the floor and he looked quite afraid.

The other man was pale, and had long hair tied in a braid, half of it a silvery blond, the other half a dark red. On his left eye was a large burn scar. He had a plain button-down shirt and loose khakis. While the other guy looked surprised, this guy looked like he had been told some mildly shocking news.

Katsuki looked downright panicked.

“Kacchan, why the _fuck_ is Eij–”

“Red!” Katsuki yelled suddenly, bending down to help Red up, “You okay?”

“Fine, I’m good,” he replied, accepting Katsuki’s hand.

“Red?” The man with the dual hair asked curiously.

“Hey Kacchan,” the curly-haired guy said icily, “Can I talk to you outside for a moment?”

The way he phrased it didn’t allow for a decline. So Kastuki sighed and jabbed a finger at the red and white haired man.

“Don’t tell him _anything,_ Half n’ Half bastard!”

“Um, okay.”

“Okay Deku, let’s fucking talk,” Katsuki hissed, storming outside, followed by apparently Deku.

“Why does he call you guys that?” Red asked.

“And one more thing!” Katsuki yelled, poking his head back in, “Don’t tell him anything about you-know-who, got it?”

“Ah. I see.”

After a stern look, Katsuki left.

“He calls me that because of the hair,” the man said, holding out his right hand, “My real name is Todoroki Shouto, but call me Shouto.”

“Oh, sure,” Red said, shaking his hand and finding it surprisingly cold, which was saying something as his own hands were always icy, “I’m Red.”

“I see. How long have you been living with Katsuki?”

“About four days now,” Red admitted, “I’m guessing you guys are friends?”

Shouto nodded, “Yes my fiancé, Izuku, was friends with him growing up. And we know each other through our careers.”

“Are you a model?” Red asked, “I know Katsuki does photography, but I don’t know what kind he does.”

Shouto shrugged, “Sometimes I model for him and his family. I’m actually a social worker. “

“Oh, cool!”

“So...do you have amnesia?” Shouto asked carefully.

“Yeah,” Red admitted with an awkward laugh, “Katsuki told me that I fell into a bog and hit my head on a rock or something. Apparently he knew me before, but he won’t tell me much.”

“And you trust him?”

Red frowned, “Should I not?”

Shouto shrugged, his expression still remaining neutral, “I trust him, and I don’t trust very many people. I’m just surprised you would trust him so blindly.”

“Well what else am I supposed to do?” Red asked, “He helped me, and saved my life probably.”

“He did, more than you realize. I am going to go check on the two, you should stay here.”

Red nodded and watched Shouto walk to the main door and exit, closing it behind him. After a moment of deliberation, he followed and looked out the front window, which was cracked open a little bit to let some fresh air in.

“–with Akiko,” Katsuki was saying, “So nothing like you fucking think.”

“Still dangerous,” Izuku argued, “And way more than what you’re used to! Kids and small animals, Kacchan!”

“Hey.” This was from Shouto, “You told him he fell in a bog?”

Katsuki then just started screaming and Red wanted to run to him, but he heard Izuku sigh heavily.

“Goddammit Kacchan, you’re gonna scare the shit out of him.”

“Then let me do what I need to do!” Katsuki yelled, “You’re apprenticed to a dragon, _not_ a yosei, so I would think I’m a little more fucking educated on the subject.”

“You’re right, but you’re still in dangerous territory here. Maybe I should ask All Might?”

Katsuki sighed in annoyance, “Fine. Let’s go back inside, before he gets suspicious. We’ll continue this conversation later.”

Red then scrambled away from the window and dashed to the bedroom, picking up the sketchbook and pretending to leaf through it.

“Oi, Red?” Katsuki called out when he came inside.

“In the bedroom – I heard a scream, everything okay?”

“Yeah,” Katsuki said as the other two men followed him in, “Deku here is just pestering me about work, as always. Needs new photos for some campaign for local police or what the fuck ever.”

“Oh, cool!” Red was desperately trying to act like he hadn’t just eavesdropped on a very weird conversation, but none of the others noticed his bad acting.

“We should probably head out,” Izuku said, “I’m supposed to meet Uraraka after this. I won’t mention, the uh, campaign.”

“Better fucking not.”

“Thank you for dinner,” Shouto said as they started to head back out the door, “We’ll come pick the dish up some other time.”

“Yeah, yeah. Drive safe.”

The two got into a car parked next to Katsuki’s and drove off, waving as they pulled away.

With a huff, Katsuki closed the door.

“Saved a portian for ya,” he said as he opened the oven, “In hindsight, probably would’ve been easier if you just ate with us.”

“Katsuki,” Red said, shuffling his feet, “Why did I have to hide?”

“Because,” Katsuki said as he straightened up, a tin dish in hand, his back to Red, “You’re not supposed to be here.”

“Where am I supposed to be?”

“Dead.”

Red’s heart stopped as Katsuki turned around and walked over to him, hands in back pockets.

“Why? Did... I...die?”

“I can’t answer,” Katsuki said cooly, “I can’t answer a lot of shit. All you gotta know is that I made a deal with someone, and in order to keep.... _someone_ safe, I can’t answer many questions. If you find out too much, we could all be in some deep shit. Which is extremely fucking annoying since you have actual answers I can’t ask for.”

“I’m so confused,” Red said, pushing his hair back, “So I have no memory, no idea who I am or what happened to me, and I’m just supposed to not ask?”

“Yes.”

Red looked at Katsuki and was able to read him perfectly. His face remained calm and cool, but his eyes looked desperate. He _needed_ Red to comply, to not ask questions for this someone’s safety.

Red opened his arms and took a few steps forward, hugging Katsuki tight. Almost immediately, he returned the embrace, holding him.

“I trust you, Katsuki,” Red said into his chest, “Common sense is telling me you’re probably going to harvest my organs, but for some reason, I feel like I already trust you. And whoever this someone is that needs to be kept safe, I think they’re probably important to you.”

“Oh god,” Katsuki replied with a shaky voice, “They’re the most important person in the whole goddamned world.”


	4. Kitsune

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red is incredibly bored, and finds a kitsune

Red tried to follow the rules. He really did.

But the forest was so tempting, and after two weeks of being trapped in the house, Red could no longer stand it.

Of course, Red had gone outside before. There was a small fence and a gateway in the driveway about 200 metres from the house, marking the edge of what he guessed was the property. He had wandered all of it, found it to go in a circle, not a square shape.

Within the property was a hot tub, a two-car garage, the house, a picnic table with an umbrella – bright red and patterned with blue and orange flowers – and an outhouse. Red didn’t know how to use the hot tub and it was too warm outside anyways. He knew every inch of the house. The picnic table made for some nice outside lunches and even a dinner with Katsuki. The outhouse was clean and Katsuki said they didn’t really use it much, they had it just in case the plumbing broke or whatever. As for the garage, Red couldn’t get in it. It was locked and Red didn’t know the code, nor where to find the key for the man door.

He had at first left it alone, since he figured if Katsuki was okay with him going in there, he would’ve told him how. But after the first week, Red became bored and tried looking for the key, but couldn’t find it. He had once spent an entire afternoon trying to guess the garage code. Nothing worked.

So about three days ago, Red had explored everything he possibly could explore within Katsuki’s parameters. And three days ago, Red became antsy.

Every day at some point, he had come to the edge of the fence, at the small gate that led to a path in the woods. It was at about waist-height and latched. Around the latch were some small carvings, but Red couldn’t make them out. On the gate was a placard that read “Please keep gate closed”.

For the past three days, Red had stood in front of that gate and put his hand on the latch, but didn’t open it. He remembered Katsuki’s words, remembered him saying that Red couldn’t know too much or it would put Someone important in danger.

Red closed his eyes and sighed. Katsuki really cared for that Someone, and that someone was not Red.

He had begun to notice it after meeting Izuku and Shouto; Katsuki would often walk quietly wherever Red was, and watch him. It usually took him some time to notice Katsuki, and once he had, Katsuki would go about like nothing was wrong. But he saw how he looked at Red, how miserable and wistful he was. He was missing that Someone, and Red just wasn’t that Someone.

He began to wonder if Katsuki had originally been looking for Someone, but found Red instead. He also wondered if Katsuki regretted digging him up, if he had lost the chance to save Someone.

Suddenly, something rustled in the bushes, distracting Red from his thoughts. He put his hands on the top of the gate and leaned, trying to see what made the noise.

Bushes several feet over started rustling, and Red began to wonder if it was a rabbit or something, running from a fox.

Just then, a fox did come into view. But it was a weird fox, as it had three tails.

He remembered something then, an old folktale. He did not remember who told it or how he heard it, but he knew the lore of the kitsune – a magic fox that gained a tail each century, maxing out at nine tails.

The fox seemed to grin at him and came up right close to the gate. Red took his hands off and backed away.

But as he saw it walking closer, he noticed it walked with a limp, and it’s right hind leg was all bloodied up.

“Oh, you’re hurt,” he realized, approaching the gate again. The kitsune put its two front legs on it and almost looked like it was trying to climb up.

Red reached down to try and pick it up, but it backed away, falling over in its hurry to get away from him.

“Aw, skittish of humans,” Red said sympathetically, “It’s alright, I won’t hurt you, I want to help.”

He tried reaching his hand out and the kitsune sniffed it tentatively before licking it.

“Aha, that tickles!” Red laughed.

The kitsune put its paws on the gate and Red tried to reach for it, but the kitsune growled when his hands came too close to its belly.

“No picking up. Got it. I’ll just let you in through the gate. Hopefully Katsuki won’t mind!”

He turned his attention to the latch and found it oddly complicated. He had never really looked at it before, as he hadn’t really intended to open the gate until then.

The latch had two parts to it: the first was a straight metal one, like most people had on their doors. The second one was a chain lock, but the little ball was in the middle of a small maze.

“The hell…?”

Just then, he heard the sound of tires approaching. He panicked, as Katsuki wasn’t supposed to be home for another hour or so. He looked around, and the front door to their house wasn’t far, but the car might see him. The garage was closer and more likely to be unseen, but he didn’t know how to get in. He considered hopping over the fence and hiding in the forest, but the kitsune might feel threatened if he did that, and he would still have to figure out the gate if he wanted to help the animal.

Red heard the car stop and a door open, then someone go up to the house. Realizing he only had one option, he put his hands on the fence and was about to hop over.

“Oi, Red? Where are you?”

Red sighed with relief and got down, happy to hear Katsuki’s voice.

“Out back! I need your help with something!” Then he turned to the kitsune, “Don’t worry, I’m sure he’ll help us out!”

He heard Katsuki coming around the house then, heard his voice.

“What’re you doing out by the gate?”

“I was looking at the forest,” Red said, “and then this fox came up to me – it looks like it’s hurt.”

“A fox, huh?” Katsuki rounded the corner and came up to the gate beside Red, looking over the fence. When he saw the kitsune, his face twisted into rage and he kicked the gate, startling the animal, “Get outta here, bastard!”

“Katsuki!” Red cried, “What the hell?”

“It’s a kitsune,” he hissed, picking up a small stone and throwing it at the fox, “Get the fuck outta here, shithead!”

The kitsune hissed and then darted into the bushes.

“What the shit?” Red cried, “It didn’t do anything! It was hurt!”

‘Don’t you know anything about kitsunes?” Katsuki asked indignantly.

“No, actually. I don’t have a memory.”

“Oh, right. Sorry. Anyways, most kitsunes are tricksters, that one was no exception. No doubt it was either trying to lure you into the woods or trying to get in here.”

“Why would it try to do that?” Red asked.

Katsuki frowned, looking at the spot where the kitsune had disappeared, “I have some ideas. None of them good. Looks like I need to call a friend.”


	5. Camie and the Fox Piss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A friend comes over to help

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm absolutely living for all of your comments, and I LOVE that you guys are trying to guess what's going on. Plz keep it up lol
> 
> anyways, happy reading

Katsuki wouldn't tell Red who the friend was, and Red was starting to become annoyed.

“You’ll see soon enough,” he kept saying, pacing around the living room. He would stop every so often and look out the front window, scowling to himself before going back to his pacing.

Katsuki was starting to make Red nervous, and he was annoyed that he was nervous, but also frustrated at the fact that Katsuki wouldn’t tell him the name of someone whom he was about to meet.

So, not a great situation, all in all.

When the sun started to set, a small pink car came into view. Katsuki scowled even deeper and marched out the door, standing on the front porch with his arms crossed.

The driver’s door opened and Katsuki called out, “It does not take an hour and a fucking half to get here.”

“Ay, chill fam,” a girl’s voice called out, “It’s rush hour! And I stopped for some McD’s.”

A very pretty woman got out of the car, looking about their age. She had dirty blonde hair, large lips, and brown eyes. She smiled goofily.

“You stopped for McDonald’s?” Katsuki cried, “What the shit? I told you it was urgent!”

“But not an emergency,” the girl said easily, coming up to the porch. She had on a pair of high-waisted blue jeans and a short red shirt with blue flowers, “So I could stop for food.”

“Did you at least get us any?” Katsuki asked.

“Nah, I know you hate fast food. So, how’s Red?”

Red came out from inside so the girl could see him and she beamed.

“Oh man, you look great!”

“Uh...thanks?” The way she said it made her seem surprised, like she had imagined him as a walking corpse or something.

“Katsuki keeping you lit?”

“Uh…”

“Don’t answer that,” Katsuki said with a huff, “Red, meet Camie.”

Red smiled at her, “Nice to meet you!”

“Likewise, fam. Anywhomst, what’s the emergency?”

“We saw a kitsune,” Katsuki informed Camie, “Out by the gate.”

“Shit, eh? Well, let’s take a peek!”

She started walking around back, followed by the two men.

“Am I allowed to ask how we all know each other?”

“I’m not like, hella involved in this,” Camie replied, “so I think he should be coolio knowing who I am.”

“Our masters are old friends,” Katsuki explained.

“Masters of what?”

“The arts,” Camie said, “Katsuki’s a photographer, I’m a visual artist.”

“Oh, gotcha. So, why would Katsuki call you about a kitsune?”

“Kitsunes and artists have a lot in common, fam.”

“Camie,” Katsuki warned.

“I ain’t saying much,” Camie argued as she arrived at the gate, “Oh! The seal’s unbroken! You haven’t been to the shrine?”

“Fuckin’ course I have!” Katsuki spat back, “Just been takin’ a different route so nothing follows me home!”

“Makes sense,” Camie said with a shrug, leaning over the gate, “Shit, this kitsune was young af.”

“He had three tails,” Red recalled, “Doesn’t that mean he’s like, 300 years old?”

“Yeah,” Camie said with a shrug, “But that’s nothing compared to a kitsune that’s like, a thousand years old. Wonder what a teen was doing by your crib.”

“He looked like he was hurt,” Red said, “and he was pawing at the gate, but wouldn’t let me pick him up.”

“Classic af,” Camie said, kneeling down and picking at the dirt by the gate, “SMH man.”

“Japanese, Camie,” Katsuki reminded rudely.

Camie looked up at them and rolled her eyes, “It’s a classic kitsune move man. W– uh, they cast an illusion on themselves to make it look like they’re hurt so some poor soul takes pity on them and takes them in. Raises their health, makes em all gucci again.”

“So it was trying to get me to let it in?”  Red asked.

“Seems like it,” Camie said as she got up, brushing off her hands, “Kitsunes don’t like being locked out – shut gates are too tempting. Probably wanted to come in, tornado up your crib, then dip. If y’all want, I can mark the territory.”

For a horrible second, Red thought she was going to pee on their poor fence. Then he remembered the seal and assumed she would place a blessing or something on it.

Katsuki narrowed his eyes, “I know you don’t do shit for free. What’ll it cost?”

“Dinner.”

“You were late coming here because you got food!” Katsuki yelled, “I’m not fucking feeding you!”

“Then have kitsunes try and break your seal,” Camie said with a shrug, “IDGAF.”

Katsuki stared her down for a minute before sighing and storming inside, “Fine, but we’re having beef and vegetables!”

Camie giggled to herself and then went to her car, waving for Red to follow along, “C’mere, I’ll show you what to do.”

“Oh, um, okay?”

She went to her trunk and popped it open, revealing several dried flowers, loose leaves, stones, and jars filled with different coloured liquids. She leaned over, humming to herself as her hand flitted over the objects. Finally she snatched up a jar filled with liquid that looked suspiciously like urine, as well as a squirt nozzle.

“Found Lucky Luciano! Aight fam, let’s go bless the shit outta your gate.”

She slammed her trunk closed, jar under the arm. Then she began walking back towards the gate.

“So, uh,” Red began, “what’s in the bottle?”

“Angelica herb, cinnamon, basil, and lemon juice, all boiled over a holy flame and blessed with a sutra. Spray this on the gate, and you guys be chillin'!”

“Oh. I see.” Red had no idea what was going on. He wondered if Camie did part-time work as a priestess. And ever since she had mentioned the shrine, something had nagged at the back of his mind, like he should know something about a shrine. He hated that feeling a lot.

“So, I’m just wondering here, do you work at a shrine or something? You mentioned one earlier.”

Camie glanced at Red over her shoulder, and for a moment, she looked worried. Then she popped the can of the jar off and started to twist the squirt nozzle on.

“Yeah, kinda. Grandparents run an old shrine for a local kitsune. Sometimes we get some newbies tryna invade the territory, so we gotta know how to keep them away. This is a relatively weak spell, so it doesn’t really affect older kitsune.”

“You had a lot of that kinda stuff in your car,” Red recalled.

“Gotta stay safe, fam. C’mere, I’ll show you where to spray.”

He stepped forward and saw her spray in the centre of the gate, on the top, on the hinges, and below the latch. Then she twisted the nozzle so it was more streamlined and started squirting at the bottom.

“Kitsunes are tricksters,” Camie instructed, “You wanna cover like, every point of entry.”

“Gotcha. Do you and Katsuki go to the same shrine?”

Camie shot him a look and continued spraying, “SMH, man.”

“What?”

“You ask a lot of questions for a guy who’s not supposed to,” Camie said, “And yeah, I know the dealio with what’s happening. No, I can’t give you any deets.”

“Oh.” Why did Camie know, but not Izuku and Shouto?

“But to answer your questioné, no, we don’t go to the same shrine. His family has a deal with a local yosei that’s in the forest. Spoopy af.”

“A yosei?” He asked, “I don’t remember learning about them. Well, I don’t remember much,” Red laughed, “But I mean, like, I don’t know what they are.”

“Not many do,” Camie admitted, “kitsunes are pop stars, yosei are the creepy backstage workers that do a lot of work in the shadows. My turn to ask – you and Katsuki bone down yet?”

“W-what?” Red cried, feeling his face burn. He was sure that it was as red as his hair and his name, “Why, um, why would you ask that?”

Camie shrugged, “You’re his type. Do y’all not share a bed?”

“He sleeps on the couch,” Red admitted, trying to calm down, “He lets me sleep in the bed. We’re not, um, he’s not –”

“Not ready yet,” Camie finished, “Figures.”

“Is… Was Katsuki romantically involved with this Someone?”

“Those are beans for him to spill, fam,” she replied, doing a small hand gesture over the gate, “But this person was hella important to Katsuki. If we get them back, everything will go back to normal.”

“Would I get my memory back?” Red prompted.

Camie looked a little cornered then, and she opened and closed her mouth, opened and closed it, “Uh…..”

“Hey! Assholes! Dinner’s about ready, so wash the fuck up! I don’t want any kitsune piss-hands touching my food!”

“I told you, it’s not piss!” Camie yelled back at Katsuki through the open window, but he was already back in the kitchen, “It’s just _lemon juice,_ jfc.”

Camie then went inside, completely ignoring Red’s question.

He watched her go and then looked past the gate, out into the forest. It seemed like for every answer he got, a thousand questions arose.


	6. Yosei, Kitsune, and Sake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red has a really weird dream, and an even weirder wake up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OOOOOH MYSTERY
> 
> Highkey I am LIVING for the comments that y'all're leaving on this thing expressing your intrigue and confusion. PLEASE add more, it's highkey why this fic is getting pumped out so fast lmao
> 
> Anyways, happy reading!

_“Are you sure you’re not scared?”_

_Katsuki sat in the chair, his arms crossed, “I’m a fucking yosei’s apprentice. I ain’t scared of shit.”_

_Red shrugged and picked up the tattoo pen, “Alright, then let’s get started.”_

_Red knew that Katsuki was putting on a brave face. He had wanted to get a tattoo for a long time, that was how the two met. But now that he was in the chair, Red knew Katsuki was afraid, even just a little bit. He saw him grind his teeth when he turned the pen on._

_“Boutta start,” he said casually, pulling the skin on Katsuki’s shoulder tight. He flinched when Red first touched him with the pen, and he pulled back for a moment before starting._

_“So did I tell you about this guy that came in earlier?”_

_“Shouldn’t you be focusing more on the fucking permanent tattoo you’re putting into my skin, Shitty-Hair?”_

_Red shot him a look and Katsuki sighed, “Aight. Fine. Tell me about this guy.”_

_Red smiled, knowing that although Katsuki acted tough, he was kind of a big softie._

_He turned to get some wipes and pressed gently on the beginnings of the tattoo. When he pulled away, it was done._

_“All done!” He announced, turning the pen off._

_Katsuki looked at him, “Seriously? That’s it?”_

_“That’s it.”_

_Katsuki stared at him quizzically before getting up, going to look at the tattoo on his right shoulder in the mirror. It was a silvery skull with two roses in its eye; the left was black, the other was a deep blood red. Underneath in black was the word “faucheuse” in cursive._

_“What do you think?” Red asked, a little nervous. He had spent weeks practicing the drawing after Katsuki had first told him what he wanted, and he had never been so scared to fuck it up as he had with Katsuki – even the one time he was like, 90% sure his customer was a Yakuza._

_“I love it,” Katsuki replied with a smile, coming over to him, “You did great.”_

_“Ah, well, glad I could be of service,” Red replied with a laugh, trying very hard not to blush. Gosh, Katsuki was so_ cute!

_“You did such a good fucking job,” Katsuki said with that grin-smirk of his, “That I think I’ll take you out to dinner.”_

_“Ah man, you ain’t gotta do that,” Red said, “I’m just doing my job.”_

_“Eijirou.” Katsuki sounded a lot more stern, “Let me take you out on a fucking date.”_

_“Oh.”  Red looked at the ground, rubbing the back of his neck, “Uh. I would really like that.”_

_“Of course you would.”_

_Red froze as the voice changed. It was darker, colder. He blinked and the ground at his feet changed from the tile of his parlour to street pavement. He snapped his head back up and saw the man from before, Stain, in front of him. Then he felt a pain in his chest, and realized that Stain had a knife in his lower abdomen._

_“No,” he said, “You can’t –” then he coughed, blood spilling out of his mouth._

_“I have to,” Stain said coldly, taking the knife out and stabbing again, “The deal has to be made. I’m sorry.”_

_As he pulled the knife out again, his face changed into Katsuki, tears falling down his cheeks, “Red, Eijirou, I’m sorry, so sorry.”_

_“Katsuki, wha –”_

_“I love you, Eijirou. Remember that.”_

_And then Katsuki drove the knife right through Red’s heart._

 

Red’s eyes snapped open and he gasped, clutching at his chest. When he realized he was in bed and not bleeding, he managed to calm down a bit. He sat up and rubbed at his eyes. He glanced at the clock. 1:37 am. Jeez.

He looked at the door leading into the main room and noticed that the light was still on. Dimmed, but on. He also heard voices. After a moment of confusion, he remembered drinking with Katsuki and his friend Camie after dinner. Camie had too much to drink to drive home safely, so Katsuki offered her the couch and said he would just bunk with Red.

Red had not liked the look Camie had given them.

He had gone to bed a couple of hours ago, but the two were still up, which was odd as Katsuki usually went to bed before him.

He got up, not really feeling like going back to bed at the moment. He didn’t remember much about the dream, as usual. Just Katsuki being there, a name just out of his grasp, a tattoo, and a knife. Always a knife. Stain was there sometimes, but sometimes he was replaced by someone that Red could never remember.

He walked to the door and as he got closer, he made out conversation.

“–sure we should be talking about this? He’s in the next room, fam,” Camie asked, sounding much more sober than before.

“Red sleeps like a damn rock,” Katsuki replied, sounding a little drunk, “I once dropped a coffee pot on my toe and the bastard didn’t even stir.”

“Lmao, lit.”

Red peeked his head out the door, about to tell them that he was, in fact, awake. But when he looked through the crack, he shoved his fist in his mouth to hide the gasp.

Camie had ears almost like a cat’s that were the same colour as her hair, tipped in a reddish colour. Pushed to the side of her head was an elaborate kitsune festival mask coloured in red and white. Her nails had become red talons, and her feet propped up on the coffee table were arched and only had three fuzzy toes, resembling a fox. Perhaps the weirdest part was the fact that she had a large bushy tail draped over the side of the couch, the same colour as her hair, the tip the same as her ears.

Meanwhile, Katsuki looked _horrifying._ If he looked at him straight on, it seemed to be alright, although his face seemed a little blurry. But focusing on anything except his face directly made him look like a grinning skull. He also had more piercings in, and his black pendant from his ear seemed to shine in the moonlight.

“Man, it’s been _forever_ since I’ve been able to be in this form,” Katsuki said, stretching his arms up, which lifted his shirt and revealed abs with a naval piercing, his skin partially transparent to reveal his bones and intestines. Red was partially aroused but partially horrified.

“Lmao yeah,” Camie said with a giggle, gesturing with her clay cup, “I’m sure him seeing you like this would bring back memories, or at the least spoop him real good.”

“Well sorry I’m not some weird porno fox girl,” Katsuki teased, shoving Camie playfully, “I look badass, you look like a hooker got lost at Comic Con.”

“That’s not the kitsune,” Camie said indignantly, “Even without the furry accessories, I’m hot af.”

“Sure, whatever you say.”

The two laughed and Red came to the conclusion that he was just in another one of his dreams. A dream within a dream. Those happened all the time on TV.

As he was debating what to do next, he heard Katsuki sigh heavily, “Man, I miss him.”

 _He must be talking about Someone,_ Red thought to himself. He remembered what Katsuki had said before, about him having to remain ignorant. He should have gone back to bed and ignored the conversation – which would’ve been easy, as he was very tired.

But he was curious.

After weeks of living with Katsuki and hearing hints about Someone, he was finally getting some information. Surely it couldn’t hurt if he listened for a few more minutes.

“I know you do fam, but he’ll be back soon. And besides, you’ve got Red too!”

“It’s not the same,” Katsuki said heavily, swirling his drink around in his cup, “I love Red, but….”

“But he’s not Kirishima,” Camie finished.

 _Kirishima._ For some reason, that name was familiar to Red. He felt like he should know the name, but it just wasn’t coming to mind. But now he at least had a name for Someone; Kirishima.

Katsuki nodded, “Yeah. It’s really not the same. He’s got no memories, and he’s so unsure, and I’m pretty sure he hates me because of all of the secrets. He may also think I’m a psycho killer too.”

“As if,” Camie said easily, “Look, Red really trusts you. In like, literally the same way Kirishima did.”

“Part of him is still in Red,” Katsuki explained, “Like his personality. But his memories...they make him who he is, Camie. Like, Red is so two-dimensional, he doesn’t have the memories and depth that Kirishima had, the stuff that _made_ him Kirishima. Right now, he’s the trusting, sun-shiney guy who everyone loves.”

“But that’s not what you love,” Camie guessed.

Katsuki took a deep drink and then sighed heavily, “Probably makes me a shitty person, but yeah. I love the guy who runs a tattoo parlour, who had scars that weren’t related to his death – scars that he made into goddamn works of art. I love the guy who spends hours on some dumb bike and takes me on rides through the country, the guy who can’t cook for shit but makes the best goddamn drinks in the world.”

“His nutella milkshakes are sweet af.”

“Yeah, and so was he. And Red is too, don’t get me wrong!” Katsuki sighed again and rubbed his eyes, “Shit man, it’s just so hard to love someone when you’re clinging to someone else.”

“I get it,” Camie said, taking another drink, “Question. Bit personal, don’t gotta answer if you don’t wanna.”

“I never answer questions I don’t want to,” Katsuki said, “Shoot me.”

“Do you think – and this is hella hypothetical – that if Kirishima doesn’t come back, you could learn to love Red?”

Red’s breath hitched, and for a moment, for a terrible goddamn moment, he hoped Katsuki would say yes. Even worse, he almost wished Kirishima would stay gone.

A deep, long sigh came from Katsuki as he ran his skeletal hands through his hair.

“I don’t know,” he admitted at last, “I want to say yes, since Red is literally the next best thing to Kirishima. But...I can’t look at him without seeing Eijirou.” On the name, Katsuki’s voice cracked. Camie shuffled closer and put a hand on his shoulder, but didn’t say anything, “And fuck, some of the shit that he says is just what Eijirou would say. I don’t know if I could ever properly love Red, because all I’d be doing is loving the one  part of him that was still Kirishima.”

 _Okay,_ Red thought, _maybe a few minutes can hurt._ He felt insulted, betrayed, used. Here was Katsuki, referring to him as second best compared to the mysterious Kirishima. Red had kind of started to fall for Katsuki, and he had thought that maybe Katsuki would return the feelings. But he guessed that the only part of him that was loved was the part that was similar to Kirishima.

Katsuki then sniffed and rubbed at his eyes, scowling when he saw his eyeliner on his hand.

“Great, now I’ve ruined my fucking makeup.”

“Here,” Camie said, wiping the other one, making them both equally smudged, “Now you really look like a zombie.”

Katsuki laughed and set his cup down, “Thanks Camie. Really appreciate it.”

“Anytime. You heading in?”

“Yeah,” Katsuki replied as he got up, taking Camie’s drink once she finished it and setting on the tray next to a bottle of sake, “I’ll help you set up the couch.”

“Nah fam, it’s gucci. I know where the sleeping materials are.”

“Alright, fucking weirdo,” Katsuki scoffed as he took the tray into the kitchen. When he passed through a beam of moonlight from the window, he looked completely transparent, but only for a second.

“Thanks for letting me stay over, btw,” Camie said as she grabbed blankets and pulled out the bottom half of the couch, “And the food.”

“Yeah, well, it’s thanks for the blessing.”

“What about the chat?”

Katsuki turned to scowl at her, “Seriously? We shared good booze, that should be enough.”

“Nah, I want one more thing,” Camie said as she turned her back to Red, facing Katsuki, “ _Try_ with Red. We don’t know if we’ll get Kirishima back. I’m not saying to like, give up or whatever, but… just in case, you dig?”

“I don’t know, Camie,” Katsuki said warily, “I kind of want to but, I’m still not over Kirishima at all.”

“All I’m saying is to have that bridge built,” Camie replied, “Red’s probably a lot like Kirishima in ways you’re not seeing. And besides, he’s got the same hot bod.”

“Okay. Good fucking night, you perv.”

With a start, Red realized that Katsuki was going to come into the bedroom. He ran back to the bed and jumped in, snuggling himself into the blankets and doing his best to look like he was asleep. Considering it was almost 2 am, this wasn’t hard.

As he was actually starting to drift off, the light went out and Katsuki came into the room. Red was tempted to look at him, but he didn’t want to risk being caught. He also didn’t want to see Katsuki as a skeleton in the darkness.

So he kept his eyes closed and listened as Katsuki changed into his pajamas, then climbed in on the other side of the bed.

“You even fucking sleep like him,” Katsuki mumbled to himself, and then Red felt a warm hand brush a piece of hair back from his cheek. He almost leaned into it, but remembered he was supposed to be asleep, and also the harsh words Katsuki had said.

Then he felt Katsuki lean over and gently, ever so gently, lay a kiss on Red’s forehead. Katsuki leaned back again and seemed to settle in.

“It’ll be alright,” he said to the dark room, “I promise, Eijirou, everything’s going to work out. It has to.”


	7. Liminal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Is it a dream? Is it reality? Or something in between – something liminal?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay I know that this is a HELLA short chapter but idk I felt like it would be better if I posted this on its own. i'll post the next one soon but have this shortie for now lol
> 
> Happy Reading

_ Red blinked awake, light pouring in from the blinds they had forgotten to close. There was a weight on his chest, and he saw it was Katsuki holding his hand, his head laid by Red’s shoulder. Red groaned and put his free arm over his eyes. _

“What is it, Red?” Katsuki asked groggily, apparently woken by Red’s noise.

“S’early,” Red mumbled, “We forgot the blinds.”

“Shit, eh? Aight, hold on.”

_ Katsuki got up and went to the window, snapping the curtains shut. Then he stumbled back to bed, flopping back down onto the mattress. _

“You see the time?” Red asked.

“All you gotta know is that it’s too fucken early for a Saturday. Go the fuck back to sleep, babe.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

_ Katsuki pulled the blankets back over them and snuggled up to Red, going back to holding his hand, his head half on his neck, half on the pillow. He also had a leg swung over one of Red’s and it was the most comfortable he had ever been. _


	8. Selfish Red

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> red wants it to be different. So badly

When Red woke up, he felt colder for some reason. He looked at the bed beside him, which was empty as usual, but looked more used.

_Oh._

He suddenly remembered the night before, when Katsuki had climbed into bed with him, promising that everything. He also remembered something. Maybe a dream, maybe not? Something about the early morning. Surely it had been a dream.

He looked over at the blinds in the window and noticed that they were closed, and he was sure he hadn’t shut them the night before, and Katsuki definitely hadn't.

So maybe it wasn’t a dream.

He heard some noise in the kitchen and got out of bed, throwing on a tee shirt without looking at it.

He wandered into the kitchen and noticed that the couch was empty, and Katsuki was the only one in the main room.

“Where’s Camie?” He asked.

Katsuki looked at him over his shoulder, “Oh, hey Red. She left already, had to get back to work.”

“Oh, right. What about you?”

“I’m off,” he replied, turning around to face Red, “Thought we could hang out today.”

Red smiled, happy for the day of company, “That’s great! Any plans?”

“Well, I thought I should teach you to use the Xbox.”

 

Several hours later, Red whooped as he finished first in the race, confetti raining down around his screen on the bottom.

“Three times in a row!” He yelled excitedly.

“I don’t fucking get it,” Katsuki grumbled, “How the _fuck_ did you win on Rainbow Road?”

“Even though my brain doesn’t remember anything, my thumbs do.” Red shrugged, “Guess I played a lot of racing games before I fell in that bog.”

“Yeah, well,” Katsuki said with a smirk, “You still can’t beat me in fighting games.”

“It’s all combos!” Red complained, “I can’t remember that! I bet if I had my memory, I’d totally beat you!”

Katsuki laughed, “Nope, you still lost to me.”

“Well then, guess I’ll just have to keep playing when you’re away all day,” Red said, “Gotta get those hours in.”

“Your ass’ll melt to the couch before you beat me,” Katsuki said, “Now c’mon, let’s make some dinner.”

Red nodded as Katsuki got up. He shut off the tv and stretched loudly.

“We eating inside or outside?” He asked Katsuki.

“We can eat outside if you want – it’s supposed to rain in a couple of days, so the bugs’ll be bad tomorrow.”

“Sounds good,” Red said, “I’ll go set up outside.”

After he grabbed the cutlery and a towel to wipe off the picnic table, Red went outside happily. He did enjoy eating dinner at that little picnic table, chatting under the sun umbrella while the fireflies came out as the sun set. It was so peaceful and romantic.

Ugh. Red paused as he put everything down and took a deep breath. He had been sort of falling for Katsuki before, staring as he stretched and his shirt lifted up to reveal abs, blushed during the rare gift of Katsuki’s laugh, waited for him to come home eagerly everyday.

Yet last night’s conversation kept playing over in his mind. Katsuki was in love with this Kirishima, and he was gone. Or not? The whole situation with Kirishima Someone was very confusing, and Red tried to not think about it too much.

But that didn’t change the fact that Katsuki did not love Red. He had said that he loved the part that was similar to Kirishima, but that wasn’t loving Red, not really. Red was not Kirishima, and Kirishima was not Red. Plain and simple.

Kirishima was in danger of some sort, and somehow tied to Red’s memories. It was Red’s duty to continue ignorance to keep Kirishima safe. And while it was certainly annoying for him to be kept in the dark and how much it sucked, he didn’t mind. Not really. It meant protecting someone, and that mattered more to him than anything. Even if that someone was the love of Katsuki’s life, a love that Red could never have.

And so when they dined at the picnic table, chatting over food and drink, Red allowed himself to imagine that it was different. That he lived with Katsuki not because he was an amnesiac who was tasked with protecting someone whom he was incredibly jealous of, but because they were in love and happy to live together.

It was almost tangible, and it felt so _right_ when Red imagined it. It made him kinda sad, because it was something he could never have. But he wouldn’t let himself feel sad. For that sweet dinner, Red allowed himself to be selfish and imagine he was with Katsuki, they were together, and they were happy.


	9. The Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A disagreement of sorts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!!! I'm absolutely living for all fo the feedbakc that I've recieved and I just LIVE for the comments, y'all're wonderful!!!!
> 
> If you wanna do me a favour perhaps or if you like my writing, check out my orignal works on Wattpad here: https://www.wattpad.com/myworks
> 
> Anyways, happy reading!

_He was still being followed._

_He weighed his options, trying to calculate the best way out. He didn’t know this area super well, but he was sure that there was a cutaway somewhere around here, something he could duck into…._

_Yes! A small alley that he could shimmy into and wait for the guy to pass him. He glanced behind him and saw that the figure was gone. Not wanting to take any chances, he slipped into the alleyway._

_As he did, he turned his head to look in front of him and saw nothing but blackness. He stumbled and the ground beneath him disappeared and he fell. He was falling, falling, falling…._

_And then he was looking a the moon, and Katsuki’s face appeared in front of him. He was back in the bog._

_Katsuki raised a knife and grinned evilly, “Time to wake up.”_

_Then he brought the knife down._

 

Red shot up in bed, panting and shaking. He sighed and tried to calm down. Another nightmare. He still didn’t remember much, but he knew they were getting worse. He could feel it.

He looked at the bed beside him and noticed that it wasn’t as rough as it had been the night before. So Katsuki had ended up sleeping on the couch again. Red had enjoyed sharing a bed.

Not wanting to go back to bed, Red got up and stretched, getting dressed and ready for the day. Once he had, he came out into the main room and saw Katsuki sitting on the couch, watching a movie.

“Hey,” Red greeted, coming to lean over him and looking at the screen, “You working today?”

“I’m off,” Katsuki replied, “gotta go into town to get some stuff though.”

“Oh, gotcha.” Another lonely day.

“I’ll only be gone a couple of hours,” Katsuki said, “You don’t have to sound so mopey about it, Red.”

“I can be as mopey as I please,” Red argued, “I’ve spent weeks alone in a house in the middle of nowhere. Did you know that there are exactly 93 floorboards spanning the width of the bedroom? Because I do. Because I counted them, Katsuki.”

Katsuki rolled his eyes and turned around, shutting off the tv, “Shit, Red, I get it, you’re bored. But there’s Netflix.”

“I can only sit on a couch for so long!” Red complained, crossing his arms, “I need to do something, make something, go somewhere. I’ve been trying to keep fit with like sit ups and stuff but I’m so _bored._ ”

“Look,” Katsuki said with a sigh, “you can’t leave the property. Safety reasons.”

“I’m not going to drop dead the second I pass through the gate.”

“We don’t know that for sure.”

The way Katsuki said that made it sound so serious, like that was a real possibility. Red scoffed.

“Sure. Why can’t I leave, for real?”

“I can’t tell you that.”

Red scowled, becoming more frustrated, “Seriously? You can’t even give me a damn explanation for why I’m stuck here?”

“It could put Someone in danger,” Katsuki explained impatiently, standing up and coming around the couch to face Red properly, “I told you, you can’t ask too many questions.”

“Like hell I can’t!” Red snapped, “You understand how crazy this is right? I don’t know you, I don’t know anything! Why haven’t you taken me to a hospital, huh? That would be the logical thing to do when you find an amnesiac in the woods.”

“Because it would be very bad,” Katsuki said through gritted teeth, “I thought you trusted me, Red.”

“And I do!” Red yelled, feeling tears at the corners of his eyes, his frustration boiling hotter as he pressed a hand to his chest, “I do trust you! If I didn’t I would’ve left weeks ago! You’ve been nothing but kind to me and you’re great and –” _and I might be in love with you_ –”I appreciate you helping me, but nothing makes sense! I don’t know _anything_ , not even my real name! All to keep this stupid Kirishima safe!”

Katsuki’s eyes widened, “How the fuck do you know that name?”

 _Oh shit._ “I, uh, I overheard a little of the conversation last night,” Red admitted, “I had a bad dream and I woke up and I heard you talking, and I listened for a little bit before going back to sleep.”

“What did you hear?” Katsuki demanded, coming closer to Red.

“I know you love this Kirishima,” Red said sadly, gripping his upper arm with his other hand, looking down at the floor, “And...you see a lot of him in me, but could never love me the way you love him.”

“Red.” Red looked up and saw Katsuki was very close to him, so close that he could really only see the area around his eyes. His voice and his look was intense; more so than he had ever seen it.

“Yes?”

“Did you see me?”

“Um. No. Why?”

“Red,” Katsuki repeated, sounding more anxious, “I need the goddamn truth.”

Red looked into Katsuki’s eyes, at his face that had seemed so skeletal the night before. He had a dreadful feeling that Katsuki already knew the answer.

“I...yes. I saw you and Camie.”

“ **_FUCK!_ ** ” Katsuki yelled then, stepping back and turning away from Red, “Shit, I _knew_ that was a fucking terrible idea. Fuck! We could’ve fucked everything up!” Then he rounded back on Red, “Do you remember anything?”

“No,” Red admitted, “I swear.”

Katsuki sighed then, running his hands through his hair, “Okay, good, that’s good. Good. Fuck man. You were _not_ supposed to see that shit. Fuck.”

“For the record,” Red started, blushing a little, “I don’t care that you’re a zombie.”

Katsuki stared at him and then laughed, but it sounded too stressed out to be a proper laugh.

“God Red, you’re so damn pure. No, that’s not what I’m worried about. The fact that you saw us could’ve fucked up the whole operation.”

“I put Kirishma in danger.” Red hadn’t meant to sound harsh, but it had just come out that way. He was still thinking about the conversation, how Katsuki could never love him.

“Why the hell are you saying it like that?” Katsuki demanded.

“Well, it’s frustrating!” Red said defensively, “I’m staying in the dark to help a person I don’t even know!”

Katsuki scowled at him, “We both know that’s not the reason.”

“Fine!” Red snapped, “I’m jealous! Okay? You’re obsessed with this Kirishima and his safety, but you wouldn’t even tell me his stupid name! And then you talk about me as if I’m just second best and –” he was cut off by a sob ripping through his body, “–and it _sucks!_ I know you’ve got other people who you care about in your life, but I don’t! You’re all I’ve got, I don’t even have my own memories! I have _nothing_!”

“I know!” Katsuki yelled back, “I know, goddammit Red! I think about it every goddamned day and if you think for even one second that I’m not doing everything in my power to fix this, then you’re fucking dreaming. Do you have idea how painful this is for me? Look, I fucking get it, you lost your memory and you’re lonely and that fucking sucks but you know what sucks more? The best thing about your life being _fucking_ murdered in order to make you do something either insane or impossible.”

“I…” Red stopped, so confused, “I didn’t know. I thought Kirishima was still alive.”

“He is,” Katsuki snapped, “But he’s dead, kind of. In between. Limbo. Look, I can’t fucking explain it without giving everything away.”

“Can’t you try?” Red begged, “I’m sick and tired of being in the dark all the time!”

“So the fuck am I!” Katsuki yelled, “I can’t say shit! What you know now is already too much. The fact that you saw _both_ Camie and I like that, know that Someone is Kirishima, we’re getting dangerously close to fucking this whole thing up. And if we do, I lose both of you! And I can’t stand that, not again, no second chances.”

Red noticed that Katsuki’s chin was trembling and his eyes began to well up with tears. Despite the fact that Red himself was crying, he reached out a hand to Katsuki.

But his hand was slapped away and Katsuki stormed to the front door, pulling on his shoes and grabbing the keys.

“I’ll be back soon. I need to fix this fucking mess.”

“Katsuki, wait,” Red called, “Please let me come with you, don’t leave me alone.”

Katsuki paused, his hand on the doorknob, back to Red. For a hopeful moment, Red thought that Katsuki would say yes, that he could finally get out of the house.

“No, sorry Red. Both you and Kirishima mean too much to me. You just have to let it go.”

And then Katsuki was out, the door slamming shut behind him. Red stood and watched the door, hoping, praying that Katsuki would come back. He heard the car door open and close, and then it was quiet. He guessed that Katsuki was sitting in the car, trying to calm down. Red was hoping that he would hear the car door open and close again, but the engine started and he heard it pull out of the driveway, and then it was gone.

He was alone. Again.

He sat down on the couch and began to cry.


	10. Biking To The Ocean

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red is way too cooped up. Katsuki does something about it

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!!!!!! I'm loving all the support here and I thought a fluffy chapter would be good after last time's lol. I did a lot of research and now y'all've got an idea as to where they are in the world. Also, I may have a new travel destination lol
> 
> Also, I heard that the wattpad link wasn't working, and I did fear that. It's ahrd to link to. So just check me out @ Real_Taylor_Smith!!!
> 
> Happy Reading!!!

Red hadn’t moved from the couch in what felt like forever.

He had cried himself out, hoping that Katsuki would magically appear and calm him down, tell him that everything was going to be alright.

But that was impossible. Not because Katsuki couldn’t magically appear; Red didn’t know exactly what he was or what he could do. No, it was impossible because things were different now.

Red had seen and heard things that he wasn’t supposed to, and now Kirishima might be in danger. For some reason, his amnesia was the key to Kirishima’s safety, and any kind of memory could throw a wrench into whatever precarious plans that Katsuki and his friends had.

He feared for himself, for Katsuki, for this Kirishima. He realized that he was being selfish, and he wanted to make things better, but he wasn’t sure how.

Just then, he heard the crunch of tires and gravel from the driveway and he got up, running to the window. He looked out to see Katsuki’s car pulling in. Katsuki got out of it and Red prepared himself for the conversation that would follow, but Katsuki didn’t go into the house. Instead, he went over into the garage, quickly shutting the man door behind him.

Red wondered what he was doing in there, and what that might mean. He had been starting to suspect that Katsuki was magical in some sort of way, due to the runes on the gate and also engraved into the doors and windows. There were also a bunch of dried herbs in the kitchen but they weren’t prepped for cooking, plus Katsuki had a lot of weird rocks and leather-bound books with no titles and locks keeping them closed. Maybe the garage was his workshed, where he did...whatever kind of stuff, magic yet to be ruled out.

After standing at the window for a while, Red sighed and walked away, going to get a drink from the kitchen. As he was drinking, Katsuki came in, natural frown still plastered on his face.

“Hey, Katsuki,” Red said awkwardly as he set the glass down, “Listen, I’m sorry about earlier, I shouldn’t have yelled like that, I–”

“C’mere,” Katsuki said, gesturing for Red to follow him. Confused, he did so. Katsuki led him out onto the porch and Red saw another vehicle in the driveway.

It was a bike. Sleek, wide, red. It looked like a power cruiser with wide handlebars and side pouches. There were many small decals of black gears and on the sides was a logo; Two black “R”s mirrored and inside of a large gear.

On the seat were two helmets. One was a plain matte black, while the other was the same shiny red as the bike. On that helmet was a pattern almost like a muzzle; a jagged black stripe around the chin, nose bridge, and forehead.

“Whose bike is this?” Red asked as he walked up to it, feeling the handlebars.

“For now,” Katsuki said carefully, “it’s yours.”

“What’s with all the decals?” Red asked, gesturing to the logo.

Katsuki shrugged, “Fashion choice I guess.”

Red huffed – Katsuki was being cryptic as always.

“So how about we take this for a spin?” Katsuki offered.

Red stared at him, agape. He glanced at the bike and then back to Katsuki, “No way. I thought I couldn’t leave the property?”

“I did some talking with some friends,” Katsuki said, walking over and picking up the red helmet, “Turns out, you won’t spontaneously combust if you leave the property line.” Katsuki sighed, staring at the helmet in his hands, “I’ve been keeping a lot from you, but this whole situation is shitty. You just gotta go with it, and this is my way of saying thanks for not killing me.” Katsuki then tossed Red the helmet and took the black one for himself.

“So who’s gonna drive?” Red asked as he put the helmet on. It fit perfectly.

Katsuki scoffed, coming over and lifting the visor on Red’s helmet, “You, of course. I can’t drive this for shit. Besides, the bike is red, and your name is literally Red.”

Red laughed a little, “Alright, but… I don’t remember how to drive.”

“We’ll take it slow,” Katsuki said, going to the back side pouches and pulling out two black leather jackets. He tossed one to Red, who caught it and put it on.

Once he had, Red got on the bike. For some reason, it felt really familiar to him. Maybe it had belonged to him before he had fallen into the bog.

Mechanically, Red turned the keys and started the bike, revving the engine. It felt good. Comfortable.

He looked over at Katsuki, who was standing by the gate in the driveway. He opened it and waved for Red to go through. He did, and Katsuki shut the gate behind him. Once he had, he went and climbed on behind Red, grabbing hold of his waist.

“Take it slow,” he warned as he shut his own visor, and Red did the same, “you haven’t done this in a while.”

Red nodded to show that he had heard and revved the engine, starting off down the gravel path.

He had no idea where he was going, but as he continued to drive down the quiet country road, interrupted only by a handful of small cottages like their own, he started to become more comfortable. He _knew_  this bike. He didn’t know much else, but he knew how to ride. At that moment, that was all that mattered.

He took turns almost absently, letting his gut do the picking for him. He had no idea where he was going, and he doubted his ability to get back. But he was on his bike, Katsuki was with him, and he was out of that damned house. The only way he could’ve been happier would be if he had his memories, so he settled for the feeling of freedom he had on the bike.

Now, they were no longer in the forest, but on the open road. Still very few houses, just open fields. Red even saw a handful of wild horses grazing. It was so pretty and peaceful.

Finally, they stopped. It was at a parking lot on top of what looked like a cliff. Red took off his helmet and shook out his hair, running his fingers through it and taking a deep breath.

“I smell the sea,” he said, “I didn’t know we were so close to the sea.”

“Yeah,” Katsuki said as he took off his own helmet. His hair hadn’t moved a centimetre, “right by Matengai Cliff. I’m just shocked you took us here.”

Red shrugged, drinking in the fields and ocean breeze around him, “It just...felt right.”

“You always did love coming here.” Katsuki got off the bike and stretched, “Wanna go for a walk?”

“Sure!” Red said happily, doing the same. He took the keys from the bike and Katsuki put the helmets under the seat. They both held onto their jackets because while it was a warm day, there was a swift sea breeze.

The two walked down from the parking lot along a beaten dirt path. It amazed Red how little there was surrounding them – just fields, bushes, and some wild animals. There were a handful of people, but not many. The smell of the sea was getting stronger as they got closer, and Red found himself getting excited. He walked a little faster, eager to see the ocean.

And then there it was.

They came closer to the edge of the cliff and it was just this great big blue mass. He could hear and see the waves crashing on the rocks far below him, and he took a deep breath, basking in the setting.

“Better than the house?” Katsuki asked.

“So much better!” Red said happily, “Man, I love the sea. I didn’t know that I loved the sea.”

“Yeah,” Katsuki said, his hands in his pockets and staring out at the ocean, “you sure fucken do love it. I’m kinda pissed at myself for not bringing you out here sooner.”

“I’m here now, and that’s all that matters. This was worth the wait.”

Katsuki glanced at him and snorted before turning back to the view, “Of fucking course you’d think so. Old sap.”

Red laughed and then the two slipped into comfortable silence, just staring out at the sea. Enjoying the view and each others’ company. It was the best moment they had shared since Red had first woken up in Katsuki’s bed.


	11. Questions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red and Katsuki are still out of the house, thank God. Katsuki allows Red to ask a few questions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been a little, it was my reading week and I've been sick, plus a friend of mine died over the week and I've been dealing with that.
> 
> So I just wanna say that this chapter is dedicated to my friend Amelia. She's never seen BNHA, but I think she would've like the cheesiness of it. So here's a little of a cheesy chapter
> 
> Happy reading!

Red had stared at the ocean for at least an hour before Katsuki pulled him away, bringing him to a quiet ramen place on a beat-up country road.

“What else is near here?” Red asked during dinner, “First the forest, the ocean, now this noodle place.”

“Nishinoshima is the nearest and only village on the island,” Katsuki said, “We have a pretty big volcano, Mt. Takuhi.”

Red’s eyes widened, “There’s a _volcano?_ Dude! Why haven’t I seen it?”

“Because you’ve basically been on house arrest, dumbass,” Katsuki said with a smile, “I thought you might die if you left the house.”

“But I’m not dead!” Red announced happily, “So let’s see the volcano!”

“Nah, not today,” Katsuki said, “It’s pretty late, and that’s a whole day thing. We can go later this week.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Red said happily, “Man, I’m so hyped! I can’t believe we live on a volcanic island!”

Katsuki snorted into his bowl, “I keep forgetting that you don’t know where you live. It’s kinda funny.”

“And whose fault is that?” Red asked.

“Um, yours. You’re the idiot that fell into the bog, Hair-for-Brains.”

“Yeah,” Red admitted, “but you also refuse to tell me any information, so my ignorance is really on you.” To accent his point, Red jabbed at Katsuki with his chopsticks, which were dodged.

“Okay, that’s fair,” Katsuki conceded, “can’t blame an amnesiac for not knowing anything.”

“So why don’t you answer some questions?”

“Red,” Katsuki warned, putting down his bowl loudly.

“No, no, not personal questions!” Red said quickly, “I know you can’t answer any about me. But I wanna know more about the island, and more about you, if that’s possible.”

Katsuki hummed for a second, obviously mulling it over. He stirred the leftover noodles in his bowl with his chopsticks until he finally sighed again.

“Alright. But I retain the right to not answer.”

“Even if you didn’t, you still wouldn’t answer,” Red said with a shrug, “So am I good?”

“Yeah, sure. Shoot.”

“Okay. Ummmm,” Red hummed, trying to think of a good question to start with, “Oh! How big is the island?”

Katsuki shrugged, “Not very. Only about three thousand people on it, maybe like 60 kilometres in total area. It’s not a big island, Red.”

“Fair enough. Is that why you live here?”

Katsuki shrugged, “There’s an old shrine that my family has been keeping for generations. I’m an only son so it’s my duty to continue that tradition.”

“Yeah, okay,” Red said, “That makes sense. Are you happy here?”

Katsuki stopped, staring at his bowl. Red had thought that the question was innocent enough, but from Katsuki’s reaction, he guessed not.

“It’s fine if you don’t answer,” Red tried, “I can think of something else.”

“I was happy,” Katsuki said then, looking at Red through the corners of his eyes, “I loved it here. I love being a photographer and sometimes model for my family’s business, I love travelling for the fashion shows to Tokyo. I love the people on the island, the mystery here, keeping the shrine, all of my friends.”

“You said that you were happy,” Red noticed, speaking slowly, “Not ‘I am happy’. Why is that?”

“Dangerous territory, Red.”

“You said that Kirishima died,” Red remembered, staring at the few floating, lonely noodles in his bowl, “That he was killed. Is that why you’re no longer happy?”

Katsuki nodded, covering his mouth with his hand, still not really looking at Red, “Yeah. I can’t tell you everything, but Kirishima was very dear to me. When he died, it’s like my heart was thrown into the fucking volcano.”

“But we have a chance to save him?” Red prompted, “I mean, it’s crazy, but I’m an amnesiac who lives with a weird skeleton man in the woods, who’s friends with a kitsune.”

“We do have a chance to save him, through you,” Katsuki admitted, “And Camie isn’t a kitsune, not really. Her family takes care of the local kitsune shrine and he took her on as a disciple. Once she gets her powers, she’ll be a real kitsune.”

“That’s so cool!” Red gasped, “So can she like, shapeshift?”

“A little,” Katsuki said, “But it’s hard for her, and she can only transform into a one-tailed fox or a lady.”

“Still more than what I can do,” Red said, “So what about you?”

“Same kind of deal,” Katsuki said, obviously choosing his words very carefully, “spirit at our shrine saw potential in me so he started teaching me. No, I’m not a kitsune, and I can’t tell you what I am.”

“That’s fair,” Red said, “What about Izuku?”

Katsuki’s head shot up, “What the fuck about Deku?”

“I’m just curious,” Red defended, throwing his hands up, “You guys had that private conversation when he first came over, and it seemed like he knew stuff. Like, he and Shouto took it really well.”

“Deku’s apprenticed to a dragon,” Katsuki admitted, seeming to calm down but still staring at Red suspiciously, “The guardian of the cliffs here.”

“Does his family own a shrine too?”

“No. He made a pact with the damn thing.” Katsuki’s voice was tight, and Red guessed that it was a sore subject.

“Okay. What about Shouto?”

“He’s just a social worker,” Katsuki said, his shoulders loosening at the change of topic, “He used to be a pretty powerful mage, but he stopped studying a couple years back. Still practices and he’s a fucking force of nature, but he’d rather spend his time with kids.”

“I see. Do you have any other friends like that?” Red asked, fascinated with the magical world that Katsuki lived in.

“A few,” Katsuki said, “Denki keeps a shrine for a lightning spirit, Tsuyu is the daughter of a Rain Woman, Ashido is a potions master, and I’m friends with some other shrine keepers.”

“Wow,” Red said, “there’s a lot of magic on such a small island.”

Katsuki shrugged, “Easier to be closer to nature than in the big cities.”

“How many of them know about me?” Red asked quietly, looking back at his bowl.

“More than I would like,” Katsuki grumbled, “It was just supposed to be me, Camie, and our mentors. But now Deku and Shouto know, and it’s only a matter of time before Tsuyu figures it out, then Ochako knows, then she’ll tell Iida and Ashido, and then the entire damn island is gonna know.”

“Which is bad?”

“Super fucking bad, Red.”

“Oh. Gotcha.”

Red started playing with his cold noodles again and Katsuki sighed, asking the man behind the counter for their bill.

One thing was still bothering Red.

He remembered something that Katsuki had said to him, after first meeting Izuku and Shouto. He had asked why he couldn’t go out, why he couldn’t be seen in public.

“One more question,” Red said quietly, half hoping that Katsuki wouldn’t hear him, “What did you mean when you said I should be dead?”

Katsuki froze, still reaching for his wallet.

“Don’t worry about it,” he said coldly, finishing his movement.

“But that’s a pretty big thing to worry about!” Red cried, catching the attention of the shop owner. He flushed and lowered his voice, “Am I a zombie?”

“Do you feel like eating brains?” Katsuki asked plainly.

“Not particularly, no.”

“There you go, then.”

Red felt like that wasn’t an answer, but he knew that Katsuki was unlikely to answer it, so he decided to drop it.

But he couldn’t stop thinking about it. He felt like he was dangerously close to a breakthrough, the climax, the point of no return.

Kirishima had been murdered. Red had no memories. Red had been found in a bog. He was similar to Kirishima, most likely in appearance. Their friends couldn’t know about Red. Katsuki’s friends were magical. Perhaps someone could be brought back from the dead.

But there was still so much that didn’t make sense. What did Red have to do with Kirishima? Why couldn’t he leave the property until today? What were the signs on the gate, doors, and windows, and what did they all mean? What did any of it mean?

As they drove back home, the wind whipping around them as they twisted and turned down the forest road, Red thought about this. He thought about many things.

And as he climbed into bed, staring at the ceiling he found himself doubting his own humanity. After all, Katsuki had never said “no” when Red asked if he was a zombie.


	12. Quarter After 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red is tired of nightmares

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys!!!! I'm still loving all of the support and it makes me love wrting this even more
> 
> as a heads up, sometime later on and relatively soon, there will be some body horror. nothing awful, but I promise I will put a warning in the author's notes and put a warning before and after, so you know what to skip. I wish they did that in real books, because I am tired of random sex scenes
> 
> Anyways, happy reading!!!

_Red sat in bed beside Katsuki, who was resting his head on Red’s shoulder. They were both naked, and perfectly comfortable. Red looked down at his arms and noticed that they were covered in beautiful, intricate tattoos, just like the ones in the sketchbook; some of them were even the exact same._

_As they were sitting there, Katsuki’s hand drifted to Red’s right wrist, where there was a tattoo of a small red dragon with a black breast, white details, and feather wings._

_“Wanna see Red Jr?” Red asked with a smile._

_“Mmm.”_

_Red chuckled and flexed his wrist. As he did, the tattoo peeled off and sprang to life, becoming an actual dragon, about the size of a hummingbird. It stretched and then flitted around their heads for a bit before making a nest in Katsuki’s hair._

_“He really seems to like you,” Red said with a smile._

_Katsuki smiled too, his wonderful, crooked, half-smile, “Yeah. Probably a nice change from being stuck on your wrist all day.”_

_“It’s basically hibernation for him,” Red said, “besides, if he’s away from me for too long, he starts to fade away.”_

_“Him and I are similar like that,” Katsuki mused, “I’d fade away without you, Red.”_

_“Aw, nah man!” Red protested, “You’re the brightest guy I’ve ever seen! That’s like saying the sun’ll fade away without the moon!”_

_“Nah,” Katsuki said calmly, “I’m the moon here, you’re the fucking sun. So goddamned bright and cheerful, bringing life. I just reflect off of ya, if you go out, so do I.”_

_Just then, Red felt a sharp pain in his chest, right in his heart. He gasped and looked down, seeing a bloody knife sticking out.  He looked back up and saw Katsuki pressing the knife deeper while holding eye contact with Red._

_“Sometimes the moon has to hide the sun. It’ll all be okay, Eijirou. I promise. You just have to trust me.”_

_The pain in his chest sharpened, and the world went black._

 

Red jolted up with a shriek, clutching his chest and gasping. He fumbled for the lamp by the bed and turned it on, looking at his hands. He heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that there was no blood on them, and the pain in his chest had disappeared.

Just then, Katsuki burst through the bedroom door. Red shrieked again, as Katsuki was in his skeleton form.

“Holy _shit!_ ”

“What?” Katsuki demanded, “What is it? I heard you scream, wha-oh.” Katsuki looked at his hands and clenched his fist, his appearance returning to normal, “What happened, Red?”

“I had a nightmare,” Red admitted, “Don’t worry, I’ll fall back asleep soon.”

“Wait, a nightmare?” Katsuki asked, “Was it bad?”

Red shrugged, playing with the blankets around his waist, “I don’t really remember. Sorry if I woke you up, it’s not a big deal.”

Katsuki scowled and then huffed, coming over to sit on the empty side of the bed, beside Red.

“It is a big deal. Nightmares are shitty, and I know this isn’t the first one you’ve had.”

Red shrugged, “I dunno. They happen a lot, but I don’t really remember them. Just bits and pieces.”

“Do you want to talk about it?” Katsuki prompted.

Red scoffed, “Am I allowed to do that?”

“Well fine then,” Katsuki said coldly, “if you wanna be an asshole about it, enjoy your fucking nightmares.”

“No, I’m sorry,” Red said with a sigh, “I’m just really tired. What time is it?”

“Quarter after one,” Katsuki said, “And you didn’t wake me up, I was doing some work while you were asleep. Now, what happened in the nightmare?”

Red shrugged, “I don’t really remember much, I rarely do. I was happy in the first part though. I think it was something about you and a red dragon tattoo. I dunno. And then, ugh it gets so blurry. I just remember feeling like I was being stabbed through the heart. It hurt a lot, always does.”

“What do you mean, ‘always’?” Katsuki asked slowly.

“It happens a lot in my dreams,” Red admitted, “Stabbed. Always in the abdomen, usually in the heart. It hurts like a bitch and always wakes me up.”

“Shit Red, you should’ve told me,” Katsuki said, “that’s awful.”

“Could be worse,” Red tried, “I could have actually been stabbed, haha. And besides, I don’t wanna wake you up and by the time we’re both up again, I’ve forgotten about it. Happens when you’re an amnesiac.”

Katsuki frowned and sighed, “Geez Red. Alright, gimme a minute to finish my shit and I’ll come back to bed with you.”

“Wait, what?” Red stammered, feeling his face get hot.

“You always slept better when you shared a bed,” Katsuki said as he got up, “I should’ve known better. If that’s alright with you, I’ll sleep here tonight. Keep the nightmares away.”

“Oh. Um. That would be nice, actually.”

Katsuki smiled crookedly, “Sure it fucken would. I’m like an oven, people fucking love sharing my body heat.”

With that, he turned and left the room, presumably to finish whatever he had been working on.

Curious, Red crept out of bed and peeked out through the crack of the door, seeing Katsuki back in his weird skeleton appearance, holding the orange and red stick he had seen around the house. He held it over the coffee table, on which a strange symbol surrounded by crystals glowed, flickering between red, blue, violet, and green. Katsuki was moving his wand over it, chanting quietly. After a moment, he stopped, lowering the wand as he fell silent. The glow faded with the noise, and soon the room was dark again. Katsuki then set his wand down and started gathering the stones, which meant he was going to be coming back in a moment.

Red scrambled back into the bed, straightening out the covers. He glanced at the extra pillows he had piled on the floor and debated putting one between them, but they hadn’t done that when Camie had visited.

Red was debating this when Katsuki walked in holding his wand and a cloth pouch where his stones probably were.

“What were you doing?” Red couldn’t help but ask.

“A protection spell,” Katsuki said, “I usually do one once a night, after you’re asleep. But you’ve seen me like um, well let’s just say I don’t have to hide that part anymore.”

“Oh. Right.” Red suddenly remembered the conversation he had eavesdropped between Katsuki and Camie, when he had learned how in love with Kirishima Katsuki was. He didn’t like remembering that conversation much.

Katsuki set his stuff down on the bedside table and went to the dresser, stripping off his shirt. Red was about to turn away when something caught his eye.

“I didn’t know you had a tattoo.”

Katsuki froze, his hand inside one of the drawers. Slowly, he lifted a hand to his right shoulder, where a tattoo of a silvery skull with one black rose in its eye, and a red one in the other. There was some writing underneath too, but Red couldn’t see it from his position.

“Yeah,” Katsuki said eventually as he grabbed a pair of pyjama pants. Red turned around to let Katsuki get changed.

“What’s it mean?” Red asked.

“Love and death. The word underneath is ‘reaper’ in French.”

“Why French?”

“It’s my second language. I’m dressed now, by the way.”

Red turned back around to see Katsuki climbing into bed.

“Oh, and here,” he said, handing Red a small purple crystal, “It’s amethyst. Put this under your pillow to help you sleep.”

“Thanks,” Red said, taking the stone and slipping it under his pillow, “I um, I really appreciate it.”

“Don’t fucking worry about it,” Katsuki grumbled, settling in, “And turn that fucking light off. I’m tired as shit.”

“Yeah, me too,” Red said, reaching over and shutting off the light. He too settled down, and he was surprised to hear Katsuki’s light snoring. He hadn’t known it was possible to fall asleep that quickly. However, he wasn’t far behind, as he was very tired.

Red felt his eyelids getting heavier, sleep overtaking him, and found himself thinking of the tattoo. Why roses? And why one red, one black? He found that the tattoo was much like Katsuki; a beautiful mystery.


	13. Naozumi the Kistune

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 13: Naozumi's Intro

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I like to make things happen in chapter 13

Red didn’t get up until noon.

He had woken up slowly and peacefully, but a little cold. He looked over and noticed that the bed beside him was empty but, on the other night table, there was a note.

Red leaned over and picked it up, reading it over.

_Wanted to let you sleep, I had to go to work. Glad you slept well._

_-K._

Red smiled as he read the note. He thought that it was thoughtful of Katsuki to leave him one, even if it was short. But then again, Katsuki was not a man of many words.

Red tucked the note into his side drawer before getting up and getting dressed. As he did, he found himself really hungry, which he guessed was expected since he had slept through breakfast and lunch.

After dressing himself, he heated up some leftovers and went to sit in the backyard at the picnic table, happy to be surrounded by nature. The day before had been wonderful, and he hoped they would have a chance to get out like that again.

As Red was eating, he heard a rustling in the bushes. He froze, trying to listen for it. Sure enough, he saw one of the bushes close to the gate rustling, loudly.

He slowly got up, willing to leave his food if he had to book it back to the house. He didn’t have a cell phone, but there was landline inside that Katsuki had told him to only use for emergencies.

As he was formulating his escape plan, the fox from before – the one with three tails – appeared, coming up to the gate, unhurt and curious.

“Hey!” Red cried, “Get away! Shoo! I’m not going to let you in!”

“Please don’t talk to me like I’m an animal.”

“ _HOLY FUCK DID YOU JUST TALK?”_

The kitsune chuckled, its voice deeper than one would expect. Well, Red hadn’t been expecting the fox to speak at all.

As Red watched, the kitsune stood up on its hind legs, becoming taller as it did. It quickly morphed into a humanoid shape, his appearance similar to Camie’s in the ears, feet, and tail. Instead of Camie’s soft blonde, this kitsune had fiery orange hair, ears and tail tipped in black. His hair was wild and long, loosely braided. He wore elaborate robes that were loose, revealing a rather attractive washboard-stomach. The kitsune also looked to be around Red’s age.

Red knew he should have ran into the house and called Katsuki, but he found himself frozen in place.

“You can’t come in,” he said firmly, “Camie blessed it, and we’ve been keeping it that way.”

“I can tell,” the kitsune said with an easy smile, “But that’s alright. I just wanna talk.”

Red was suspicious, well, who wouldn’t be? But he was also terribly curious. Why would this kitsune want to talk with him?

“Okay,” he said warily, not moving from his spot at the picnic table, a good twenty metres from the gate, “what do you wanna talk about?”

“I’m curious,” the kitsune said, “I’ve heard about your predicament, and I wanted to see if it was true. I’m quite sad to see that it is.”

“What do you mean?” Red demanded, “What’ve you heard?"

“I think that the better question would be what do you know?” The kitsune drawled, “I would like to compare notes.”

Red frowned, “Katsuki found me in a bog, almost dead, no memory. He’s been keeping me here, keeping me safe.”

“And keeping secrets,” the kitsune said with a smirk.

“He’s doing it to protect someone,” Red defended, “And, wait, how do you even know that?”

“Because you don’t recognize me,” the kitsune replied easily, “I bet you don’t even know my name.”

Red shook his head and the kitsune grinned, “Naozumi. What does Katsuki call you?”

“Red,” he answered carefully, “how do you know me?”

The kitsune shrugged, “We were really close, before you disappeared. I’ve been looking everywhere for you, but I’d never expect to find you here.”

“Why? And why did you pretend to be hurt?”

“I wanted to know if it was still you,” Naozumi replied, “Only you would be willing to help a kitsune. I was waiting for you to let me in to reveal myself, but then Katsuki butted in.”

Naozumi had said Katsuki’s name like it tasted bitter in his mouth, and Red didn’t like that.

“Hey, he’s been keeping me safe!” Red defended.

“From what?” Naozumi asked innocently.

“Well...I don’t know exactly, but he’s protecting someone he cares about.”

“But that person isn’t you.”

“I never said that.”

“But you did,” Naozumi said, “all in the subtext. You could’ve said ‘he’s protecting me’, but you didn’t. Let me guess, he’s protecting someone by the name of Kirishima?”

Red froze, absolutely blindsided. He was already a fair distance from the gate but he took a step back, “How did you know that?”

Naozumi’s three tails flicked, “I’m a kitsune. It’s a small island. I make it my business to know things. Especially when one of my past lovers is involved.”

“Okay, hold up,” Red said, pinching the bridge of his nose, “this is just. Okay. So you’re a kitsune who used to know me, you don’t like Katsuki, and you’re nosy because you used to date one of us?”

“You really don’t know _anything_ , do you?” Naozumi asked with a grin, “Oh my, Katsuki really did a number on you, huh?”

“He didn’t do this to me!” Red snapped, starting to tire of the accusations.

“How do you know?” Naozumi asked innocently, “You don’t know anything.”

“I know he would never hurt me,” Red insisted, “He’s trying to help me!”

“Is that what he told you?”

“I’ve had enough,” Red decided, collecting his plate from the table, “I don’t need to listen to this.”

“You don’t,” Naozumi agreed, “I never said you had to. But I knew you would. I want you to think about what I’ve said.”

“You’ve barely said anything except ask me stupid questions!” Red snapped, “No, nope, I’m done with this. So fuck off, why don’t you?”

Naozumi just laughed, “You have been spending too much time with Katsuki.” Then he shrank back down into a fox and bounded off into the forest. Just like that, he was gone.

Red huffed with annoyance and took his stuff inside, tired of nature.

But as he was sitting and trying to enjoy his meal, he did keep thinking of what Naozumi had said. He had claimed to know him, he knew who Kirishima and Katsuki were. He had dated one of the three. What did this have to do with anything?

He shook his head. Why should be believe anything a kitsune said?


	14. Obsidian Prism and Balanced Wand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An explanation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'ALL I HAVE FANART OMGGGGGGGG please check out andersunny on tumblr – they've done amazing art that just brings this story to life and it's just gorgeous plz plz check it out. They're a huge inspiration and my personal favourite piece is their "If you go out, so do I"
> 
> Also, if you guys wanna make fanart or headcanons or questions, hmu on my tumblr, @ohshitmyship. Tag me, message me, ask me, follow me! Not to like, promo or anything lol, but I love interacting with y'all and it brings me a lot of joy to do so! 
> 
> Anyways, happy reading!

Red waited eagerly for Katsuki to come home.

He would be lying if he said that he wasn’t shaken up by the kitsune.

Of course, he didn’t trust Naozumi, how could he? Katsuki had been there from the beginning, helping him, trying to make things easier for him. And Red understood that the whole situation that he was in wasn’t great – they had moved past that. No, Red was more or less fine with all that now.

The problem was what the kitsune had said about being in a relationship.

Red had suspicions that Naozumi had been talking about him, stating that they were close. Besides, Katsuki had been with Kirishima before all this happened.

Red supposed it kind of made sense – he was the amnesiac, and he knew that he and Katsuki had been somewhat close before he fell in the bog, which meant that he would have been within the circle of magical friends. So dating a kitsune wasn’t like, _totally_ out there.

But then why hadn’t Katsuki mentioned Naozumi? Had they broken up before all this began? Did Katsuki not know?

Red sighed, laying on the bed and staring up at the ceiling. Of course, just when he thought things were getting better, a wrench like this would be thrown into the mix.

“I should probably tell Katsuki when he gets home,” Red said to himself, “But...nothing happened. Besides, he can’t get in. Nah,” Red decided, “Nevermind it. It’s stupid. If it happens again, I’ll tell him. The gate is sealed, so no need to worry.”

After deciding this, Red went to the TV, determined to learn all the fighting combos for Wonder Woman.

 

* * *

 

When Katsuki came home a couple of hours later, Red was still on the couch, and Katsuki had to put a hand on his shoulder to get his attention.

“Shit!” He yelped as he jumped, looking up at a smirking Katsuki, “You scared me, man. Didn’t hear you come in.”

Katsuki shrugged and put his bag down by the door, “I just got in. Have you been like that all day?”

“No,” Red said as he paused the game, “Just a couple of hours. Wanna play?”

“I’m okay for now,” Katsuki said, wandering into the kitchen, “Damn, it looks like I need to get groceries.”

“Can I come?” Red asked hopefully,peering over the edge of the couch.

Katsuki shook his head, not looking at Red, “Nope. Grocery store is right in the centre of town. If it was like, a local farmer or something I might get away with it.”

“Fair enough,” Red conceded, “And I’m not going out in public because I’m dead, right?”

Katsuki froze, “I probably shouldn’t have said that.”

“Not tryna pick a fight,” Red said, getting up and leaning on the back of the couch, “I’m just curious. Can I ask about this?”

Katsuki sighed and turned around. He stared at Red for a while, but Red didn’t mind. At least Katsuki was willing to talk.

Finally, he spoke, very carefully, “We don’t think you fell into that bog on accident.”

“Wait, you saying I jumped in?” Red asked, dumbfounded.

“No, dumbass,” Katsuki scoffed with a small smile before turning sad, “You were put in there by someone else.”

“Was it Stain?”

Katsuki’s eyes widened, “Do you remember?”

Red shook his head, “Just dreams. Stain is in a bunch, remember? That, and the stabbing. Wait!” Red pulled down the collar of his shirt, looking at the scar over his heart, “Maybe this is cuz of him! He used knives, right?”

Katsuki bit his lip, obviously thinking hard, “You know what? Yeah. We had suspicions, but Stain would make sense, sort of. But he only kills cops, so why would he bother with you?”

Red shrugged, “Maybe I was a cop?”

Katsuki shook his head, “No, you weren’t. So that’s really odd.”

“Odder than living with a zombie?” Red teased.

“Who’re you referring to?”

Red grinned, “So you admit I’m a zombie!”

“Pfft,” Katsuki scoffed, “I was joking, Hair-for-Brains. You’re not dead, and you’re certainly not a zombie.”

“So, what?” Red asked, “Did Stain just attempt to kill me, and never finished the job, just dumped me in a bog and hoped for the best?”

“Well, he definitely didn’t accomplish his goal,” Katsuki said, “But you get why you can’t be seen in public, right?”

“Yeah,” Red admitted, “I’m sure everyone thinks I’m dead, or at least missing. Stain – or whoever the killer is – probably thinks so too. And I dunno about you man, but I would like to keep it that way.”

“Exactly,” Katsuki said with a smile as he turned back to the fridge, opening it and examining the contents once again.

Red hummed to himself, thinking things over. Okay, so that would make sense. It still didn’t answer all of his questions, not even close to it. But it was something, and it matched up with what the kitsune said.

Red stopped short. Why was he now comparing his answers to what Naozumi said? He couldn’t be trusted, just a supernatural stranger.

But then again, wasn’t Katsuki the same in that manner?

Red watched Katsuki moving in the kitchen and began debating with himself.

While Katsuki had never exactly been transparent, he was mostly kind, and genuinely cared for Red. While they both knew that Red was needed in order to save Kirishima, Red also knew that Katsuki did care about Red, even just for the time being.

On the other hand, there was still so much that Red had found out, and Katsuki hadn’t always been super nice about it. He was brash, rude, and loud. He had way too many secrets and Red had to be honest with himself to say that it freaked him out a little bit, plus the whole magic skeleton thing was really weird.

“Red!”

He snapped back to reality and noticed that Katsuki was looking at him with a worried expression, “You good? I called your name like, three times?”

“Oh, sorry,” Red said with an awkward chuckle, “I guess I just kinda zoned out.”

“Where did you go?”

“Just thinking about everything,” Red said, not wanting to give Katsuki the whole truth.

“Lots to think about,” Katsuki agreed, turning back to the kitchen, “So anyways, I spoke with my master today, and he thinks that the two of you should meet.”

“Really?” Red asked, “I thought that whole side of things was supposed to stay secret?”

“It was,” Katsuki said, “but things have gotten more complicated since you’ve seen me in my, um, other form, seen me do magic, and you’re able to leave the property, which we didn’t think you could.”

“So he wants to, what? Interview me?”

“Sorta,” Katsuki said, starting to chop vegetables, “he wants to see what you remember, see how well you’re doing health-wise, all that. We just gotta find a way how.”

“What do you mean?” Red asked, “Is he supposed to stay secret too?”

“Kinda,” Katsuki said, “he can’t leave the shrine because we know that someone is out to get us, and we have no idea who or what they are. But, you can’t go to the shrine because then that would definitely, 100% fuck all the shit up.”

“But I can leave the property,” Red said, “and see you doing magic, and I still haven't regained any of my memories. And I thought that all of those things would definitely, 100% fuck all the shit up.”

“No,” Katsuki said, pointing at him with the knife, “We _thought_ that those would cause an issue, and not a major one. This predicament that we’re in is just really fucking delicate, so we’re doing everything we can to keep things in balance.”

“I….don’t get it.”

Katsuki huffed and put his knife down, “Hold on.” He went into the bedroom and after a moment, came out with a small obsidian prism and his bright stick. He went to the coffee table and gestured for Red to sit down across from him, so he did.

As he was doing so, Katsuki put the prism on the table, “This is….shit, how do I explain it? This is the thing that’s holding everything up, that is our chance at saving Kirishima and getting you back to normal.” Then he put the stick on top, holding it on both sides, “This is like how things are. We have to keep things in a very particular balance of information and ignorance. You know too much –” he tipped the wand one way, “– or you know too little –” he tipped the wand another, “ – we’re fucked. But, if we keep it in perfect balance….” He slowly lifted his hands from the wand above the prism, “We might just stand a chance at doing the impossible.”

“Oh, I get it!” Red said excitedly, “So stuff like me going out or seeing you and Camie, it kinda tests the balance, right?”

“Exactly,” Kasuki said, pushing just a little on one end, “And we’re trying to get information on my end to find out what’s safe.” He pushed down on the other end to restore balance, “It’s fucking exhausting.”

“Okay, I understand,” Red said, “so, no visiting your shrine?”

“Absolutely fucking not,” Katsuki said, slamming his hand down on the wand, causing it to fling off the prism and into the air, but Katsuki caught it deftly.

“Point made,” Red said, feeling a little sick to his stomach, “No shrine.”

“Good,” Katsuki said, getting up and going back to the kitchen.

As he did, Red stared at the two things on the table and thought about the Naozumi. He wondered how that had tipped the wand.


	15. The Rose Garden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red finds some dead flowers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY!!! ROSE SYMBOISM TO MATCH ANDERSUNNY'S BEAUTIFUL ART

Red had been kind of wary to go outside after Naozumi.

A day later, and he was wondering what he would do if the kitsune showed up again.

He told himself that he would walk away and not listen to another word Naozumi had said, but deep down, he knew that wasn’t true. He was intrigued by Naozumi, and he had a strong feeling that Naozumi would have looser lips than Katsuki. That thought both enticed and terrified him.

But Red was feeling cooped up again, and no amount of video games could change that. So, around noon, he decided to go and mind the backyard.

He had already mowed it a handful of times, keeping the grass at a comfortable level. After bringing it up, Katsuki had left the lawnmower outside of the garage so Red could do what he wanted.

After he had finished, he walked around the house, looking for repairs. Something off to the right side underneath the window caught his eye.

It was a patch of brambles, one that Red had seen before. He had mostly ignored it, telling himself he would get around to it and often forgetting. But a flash of colour had been what drew his attention to it.

He walked over and knelt down, looking closer at the plants.

The thing that had caught his eye was a young, pink blossom. It was yet to bloom, but probably would within the next few weeks. All around it were dried up stems with thorns, leaves, and brown petals rotting in the old flowerbed.

“Huh,” he said as he picked up an old petal, “This must’ve been a rose garden. Wonder why it was just left like this….”

After a moment, Red decided on what he wanted to do. He got up and went into the kitchen and grabbed a pair of scissors and a compost bag. By the door were a few gardening tools like gloves, a small shovel, and a hoe. He took them all and went outside, plopping down beside the dead flowers and setting to work.

 

By the time Katsuki came home, the flowerbed was looking a lot better.

The weeds were all pulled, dead leaves and petals swept away, and all of the dead stems were cut. The only thing that had remained in the small garden was the single pale rose, which Red had watered.

When he heard Katsuki pull into the driveway and get out, he called to him, “I’m at the side of the house!”

Katsuki came over, his bag slung over his shoulder. Red noticed that he wore a black leather jacket, black ripped jeans, and a rusty orange shirt with a black X in the centre. Red also noticed that he only had his one nose piercing and his double earlobes in, and that his makeup was a lot heavier, with darker eyeshadow and contoured lines.

“You look nice,” Red said with a smile.

Katsuki shrugged, “Had to model today. Whatcha doin?”

“I found an old rose garden,” Red said, gesturing to his work, “It was pretty gross, but still had one blooming, so I thought I might clean it up.”

“To be honest, I’d completely forgotten about the roses,” Katsuki said, his left hand drifting to his right shoulder, “But they’ve been dead for a while.”

“I guess one was still kicking!” Red said happily, “I think I might try to bring this garden back. Would you mind buying some seeds?”

“I have some in the garage,” Katsuki said, his voice colder for some reason, “Gimme a minute to change.”

Before he could say anything else, Katsuki went inside the house. Red stared at the rose and wondered why he had suddenly become so closed off, so cold. Had the roses been killed on purpose?

While Red was wondering this, Katsuki came back out in shorts and an old orange shirt. “Stay there,” he said as he went to the garage.

Red waited and watched as Katsuki went inside. After a moment, he came back out carrying a small, shimmering black pouch.

He came and sat beside Red, opening up the pouch.

For a moment, Red thought that the velvet bag was filled with teeth. But upon further examination, he saw that they were not teeth, but seeds.

“This was Kirishima’s garden,” Katsuki said quietly, looking at the seeds, “after he was killed, I just kind of forgot about this. I can’t believe there’s one still around.”

“There’s still hope,” Red assured, laying a hand on Katsuki’s shoulder, “we’ll get him back. Until then, I’ll keep the garden. I’m sure Kirishima would be happy to see his roses alive and well.”

Katsuki chuckled, “Yeah. He’d love that.”

“Let’s get started then!” Red said excitedly, slamming his fists together. He grinned, but frowned when he saw Katsuki staring at him, “What?”

“Nothing,” he said as he shook his head, “I’m just shit at gardening.”

“Well, I think I’m okay at it,” Red said, “Managed to clear all this out. Let’s start planting the seeds, and go from there. If we make mistakes, we can fix it. Roses are pretty resilient, so don’t worry about being too rough. Besides, they grow in brambles a lot, so we should get a climber. Wouldn’t that look nice, Katsuki?”

  



	16. The Kitsune That Came Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Naozumi returns

Red was glad for the rose garden, as it gave him something to do.

Katsuki had been kind enough to keep all of the gardening tools out for him, so Red used them daily. He always pulled weeds, watered the flowers, aided them in their growth. A few days had passed and a couple of the seeds had sprouted some seedlings, but the only one close to blooming was the pink rose, which had slightly deepened in colour.

He was quite proud of himself, as it appeared to be more productive than anything else he had been doing. Housework was fine, but it just meant that the house looked the same. With the roses, he could mark his progress. It felt like he was doing something.

Of course, they made him a little sad, too. These were Kirishima’s roses, not his. He was just minding them while he was gone and after this mess, Kirishima would be back to keep the roses, and Red would be gone.

But he couldn’t worry about that now. He had no idea when Kirishima would be coming back and when this would be over. Katsuki of course couldn’t tell him much, but a timeline would be nice.

So he tended the roses and took joy in doing so. After a few days, he had all but forgotten about Naozumi, unafraid among the flowerbuds.

Until he came to visit again.

“My, what lovely flowers.”

Red froze. Then he took a breath and continued working. Maybe, if he ignored him, he would go away.

“I’m not just going to go away, Red.”

_Shit._

“What do you want?” He asked with a huff.

“To talk, of course!” Naozumi said with a grin, leaning on the fence closest to Red, which was still several metres away, “How’re you?”

“Why are you bothering?” Red snapped, “I’ll just tell Katsuki that you came and Camie will bless the gate again.”

“How do you know she blessed it?”

Red scowled, “I watched her do it.”

“But do you know the difference between a blessing and a curse?”

Red opened his mouth, about the proclaim that _of course_  he knew the difference, but he found that he didn’t.

“Alright, fine. I don’t know. But I trust Camie.”

Naozumi scoffed, “Trusting a kitsune. Not very smart.”

“Katsuki trusts her!” Red snapped, standing up and crossing his arms.

“And you blindly trust Katsuki’s stupid decision.” Naozumi shook his head, “The only way to truly know what a kitsune’s plans are is to be one yourself. Takes one to know one, and all that.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Red said, “then you could never trust a kitsune.”

“We’re not meant to be trusted,” Naozumi warned, “But go ahead. Tell Katsuki I was here. Have Camie bless this gate and just let things go on. How much longer until they trade you in?”

Red scowled, “What the hell are you talking about?”

“The trade,” Naozumi said innocently, “I’m curious as to how long I have with my dear friend Red. Oh!” Naozumi gasped dramatically and giggled, “You don’t know! Oh, how cruel!”

“What?” Red snapped.

“You’re on death row!” Naozumi said with a pitying smile, “No idea until the hour is up, and your loved ones don’t know until after! Such a shame, really.”

“What trade?” Red demanded, angry with Naozumi’s jokes but also frightened.

“Don’t you know anything about necromancy?” Naozumi asked with a grin.

“No!” Red yelled, “I don’t know _anything about anything_!”

“No need to yell,” Naozumi said, “In short, to bring someone back, someone else has to be given up. But it takes a lot of preparation. It’s kinda like raising a pig for the slaughter.”

“And you think I’m that pig?”

“Oh, I know you’re that pig,” Naozumi assured, “I thought you knew.”

“I don’t remember anything, remember?” Red reminded the intruder, unsure of how to react.

“But I thought that Katsuki would’ve at least told you,” Naozumi said, “I’m sure you’d be a willing sacrifice.”

“I’m not a sacrifice!” Red insisted, picking up his gardening tools, “And I’m done listening to you!”

“But you should think about it,” Naozumi asked cooly, “Ask Katsuki about equivalent exchange. You’ll see.”

“Get outta here, jackass!” Red yelled, picking up a small rock and hucking it at Naozumi. Of course, it missed and Red watched in anger as he shrank down into a fox and bolted into the undergrowth.

He turned back to his flowers and grumbled to himself as he picked up all of his tools.

“I am going to ask about equivalent exchange. Not because he said I should, but cuz I’m curious.”


	17. Pillow Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> sleepy time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know this has taken forever but I was really stumped with this chapter lol. Hope the fluff was worth the wait
> 
> Happy reading!

Red decided that it was best not to tell Katsuki about Naozumi.

So many things were in play, too many moving pieces. Red didn’t know how to make sense of it all and he was scared to mess something up. Naozumi was raising too many points to be ignored, but Red wasn’t about to trust him. However, it was making him questions Katsuki’s actions.

A couple of days later, after they had finished watching a movie and Katsuki reached for the empty popcorn bowl, Red finally allowed himself to ask the question.

“So what’s equivalent exchange?”

Katsuki froze, not looking at Red, “Where did you hear that? Don’t tell me you’ve started watching _Brotherhood_.”

“Nah,” Red said easily, “I know you wanna watch the first few with me, dunno why though. And I had a dream about it, don’t remember anything but a dark place, those two words.”

“A nightmare?” Katsuki asked, leaning back, brows furrowed, “I thought those stopped.”

“They did,” Red assured, “I’ve been sleeping way better with you, it wasn’t a nightmare. Just a weird dream.”

“Fair enough,” Katsuki said, “so you’re curious about equivalent exchange?”

Red nodded, then Katsuki sighed.

“Alright. It’s uh, it’s to do with magic. Basically, whenever you do magic, you have to give something up in order for it to work. Usually it’s just energy, but for a bigger spell you have to use physical things in order to make the magic work.”

Red nodded, but that didn’t really answer his question. He wanted to ask, so badly, but then that would give him away. How was he supposed to explain how he knew the word ‘necromancy’? He guessed it was some kind of magic, but for some reason he couldn’t remember exactly what that school of magic dealt with.

So instead of asking, he kept quiet. However, an idea was forming in his head. Naozumi had said a sacrifice was needed to bring someone back; equivalent exchange….

“I”m tired,” Katsuki announced as he stretched his arms up, “I think I’m gonna go to bed. You staying up?”

“Yeah, just for a little bit. I’ll clean up, you can go to bed.”

“Thanks.”

Katsuki stood up and stretched again, then made his way to the bedroom. Despite the confusion and worry, Red couldn’t help but smile to himself. While Katsuki was obviously a hard worker, he was also incredibly lazy. Much in the same way a cat was. More than once, Red had spotted Katsuki splayed out on the floor in a patch of sun, a book on his face. The books were always in languages that Red didn’t know, so he never knew what made Katsuki so sleepy.

After cleaning up, Red went into the bedroom, finding Katsuki already asleep. Red stopped for a moment and admired Katsuki, how peaceful he looked. He always took out his piercings when he slept, except for the black one in his right ear.

Red then turned away and got ready for bed, turning out the light as he slipped under the covers.

“So damn loud,” Katsuki mumbled beside him, turning on his side to face Red.

“Bro, I am _silent_ when getting ready. Not my fault you’re a light sleeper.”

“Yeah well better than you. You sleep like the fuckin’ dead.” Then he chuckled, as if he made some joke.

“What’s so funny?”

“You’ll laugh later.”

“Sure, whatever you say, Katsuki.”

“You’ll find it funny once it’s all over. I promise.” It was quiet for a moment as the two settled in. Then Katsuki spoke again, “Have I told you that I really appreciate you?”

“I’m sure you have, but I could stand to hear it more.”

Katsuki snorted, “So needy. Really though...I certainly wouldn’t be sane if it weren’t for you.”

“Aw, don’t say that,” Red said, on his side too so that they were face-to-face, “I’m sure you’d be fine.”

“No,” Katsuki insisted, “if you weren’t here, I’d just be all by myself, no shot at saving Kirishima. You’re my saving grace, too.”

“I try,” Red said with a smile, “By the way, what exactly was Kirishima to you?”

Katsuki sighed and turned his head, staring at the ceiling, “I can’t say. But he was incredibly important to me. He was to a lot of people.”

“Did you…” Red swallowed, “Did you love him?”

“Yes.”

 _Do you love me?_ But Red couldn’t ask the question. Too unsure, too dangerous. Especially since they were sharing a bed.

“You know you’re not a stand-in for Kirishima, right?”

“What?”

Katsuki turned back to Red, staring at him earnestly, “You’re not a stand-in. I’m not like, keeping you here to keep his spot warm, and I’m not just gonna ditch you when he comes back. I think of you as your own person, and I care about both of you.”

“Good,” Red said, “I was worried that I’d become homeless once Kirishima came back.”

Katsuki chuckled, “Don’t worry, Red. You’re always welcome here.” Katsuki finished his sentence with a hearty yawn, pulling the blankets in closer, “Fuck, I’m tired. I’m going back to sleep.”

“Sounds like a good plan. I’ll probably be right behind you.”

“Nah,” Katsuki said, already drifting back to sleep, “you’re always right beside me.” Then his eyes closed, and he was out.

“I wish I knew what you meant,” Red said with a sigh as he settled down, “Goodnight, Katsuki.”


	18. Dinner Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> yay!! FRIENDS!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this has taken so long but this is a kind of long chapter and I'm also in the middle of finals lmao but I've been dying to write this
> 
> also, would any of y'all be interested in a BNHA circus AU? uz I've been thiking bout running away and joining the circus, and it's inspired me
> 
> Anyways, happy reading!

“Red! Red wake up!”

Red’s eyes opened slowly to see Katsuki standing over him, shaking him awake and looking fearful.

“Wha-what’s wrong?”

“Did you see a kitsune?”

Red’s heart stopped and he found himself waking up _real_ fast, but not fast enough to think right. All he knew was that Katsuki couldn’t know about Naozumi.

“Uh, no. Why?”

Katsuki sighed in relief and the tension in his shoulders relaxed a little bit, “Okay, good. Cuz it looks like one’s been tampering with the magic on the gate. Guess that blessing wasn’t strong enough.”

“Is Camie going to come and bless it again?” Red asked, eager to speak with her about Naozumi and kitsune in general.

“Probably,” Katsuki said as he stepped back, “I’m gonna call her, dunno when she’ll be here. You sound excited to see her.”

“Well, I don’t see that many people,” Red said as he sat up and stretched, “It’s been like two months and I’ve met a grand total of four people.”

“Okay, fair enough. Maybe she’ll stay for dinner again.”

Red nodded as Katsuki left the room, taking some time to collect himself. So, the only reason why Katsuki knew about Naozumi was because he was messing with the gate. But why would he do that? He showed no interest in trying to come in before, so why now?

Red sighed. So many complications.

 

* * *

 

 

Later that evening, Red was tending to the roses. He found that they were growing very slowly, but they were growing. A couple more buds had been produced, but he couldn’t tell the colour just yet. Meanwhile the pink rose was almost in full bloom, maybe in a week it would reach its peak.

However, more weeds managed to sneak into Red’s garden. He kept pulling at them but found that they just came back with a vengeance. However, he would not tolerate weeds in his rose garden, no siree.

As he was working, he heard someone come up beside him.

“Lit roses, fam.”

He turned and smiled up at Camie, “Oh hey!”

She was wearing some high-waisted shorts and a floral top hanging off of her shoulders, her hair once again loose.

“Heard y’all’re dealing with more kitsune problems?”

“Yeah,” Red said, standing up and dusting himself off, “apparently one is trying to get inside the gate.”

“Yikes.”

Camie then walked over to the gate and examined the lock, Red following behind her.

“Where’s Katsuki?”

“Making dinner, which I’m guessing is your payment?”

“Exactumundo.”

“Um. Okay.”

Camie chuckled to herself as she straightened up, “Follow me to the car, yeah?”

Red nodded and followed her to her little pink car, trailing just a little bit behind her. He was watching every word that he spoke in fear of her catching onto his relationship with Naozumi, whatever that was.

Basically, if she found out that Red actually talked to Naozumi, he was screwed.

“So how’s life?” She asked casually as she popped her trunk, once again rifling through all of her weird things.

“Still confusing,” Red admitted, “By the way, what’s so bad about this kitsune?”

Camie sighed and stood up, hands on her hips, “We kitsune are tricksters, we love to mess with people, it’s like, who we are. We’re not meant to be trusted, fam.”

Eerily similar to what Naozumi had said, Red noticed, “Well how come I can trust you?”

“Mine and Katsuki’s families go way back, brosef,” she explained, going back to looking for, well whatever it was she was looking for, “It takes a lot to build trust with us peeps. Katsuki’s fam has been friends with us for generations. Trust like that isn’t held lightly.”

Red nodded, understanding. Generations of trust and friendship…. But what if she was lying about that?

Finally, Camie stood up, holding a leather pouch which looked big enough to hold a basketball.

“Okei dokei, let’s burn a bitch.”

“Wait, _what?”_

“Go get Katsuki, yeah?” She said as she hefted the bag on her shoulder, “I need his help with this.”

“Oh...okay…” As Camie went to the back, Red went into the house, seeing Katsuki knocking about in the kitchen.

Katsuki, for some weird reason, was almost always angry when he cooked. He slammed drawers, threw utensils in the sink, and muttered curses to himself. Red didn’t see him cook very often since he made meals in the morning before Red woke up, and when he made dinner Red was usually tending the garden.

“Camie needs your help,” Red finally managed to get out, “by the gate. Something about burning?”

“For fuck’s sake,” Katsuki hissed as he threw his spatula into the bowl of whatever he was making and then turned the stove down, “She knows I’m cooking! The hell does she need me to burn?” Red shrugged, then Katsuki sighed and took off his apron, “I’m just bitchin’. Let’s go.”

Katsuki led the way out back, where Camie was placing a bunch of weird ingredients in a dirt circle right by the gate. Around the border of the dirt were several yellow candles.

“What do you need?” Katsuki asked, crossing his arms.

“Your fire,” Camie said as she continued to arrange the herbs, stones, and other things in the circle, “Light my candles.”

Katsuki shot Red a quick glance, “He’s never seen my fire before.”

“Yeah, but he’s seen both of us as spirits,” Camie said easily, “so I think you’re gucci. Yeet your flames over here, fam.”

“Holy shit I hate you so much,” Katsuki said as he flexed his wrists and walked over.

Camie stepped back and let Katsuki have his space. He pulled a match from his pocket and flicked it with his thumbnail, igniting a small flame. He brought the match close to his mouth and used his free hand to cover it, so Red couldn’t see what he was doing.

A moment later, he pulled his hand back and Red saw that the flame was a deep black, as if it was a hole in reality.

He knelt down and lit one of the candles with his flame. On its own, the flame jumped from candle to candle, igniting them all of its own free will. Katsuki whispered something to the match then snuffed it out while the rest kept burning.

“Um… can I know what just happened?” Red asked warily.

“Magic,” Katsuki said plainly as he stuffed the match back in his pocket, “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to finish dinner if you ever wanna eat.”  
The two let him pass by and turned back to the circle.

“So...wanna explain to me what this is?”

Camie blew a raspberry loudly, perhaps in frustration, perhaps because it was Camie.

“Idk how much I can explain, dude. It’s like…. It’s a protection thing. It’s specifically for kitsune, and it keeps away any that aren’t my clan. Katsuki’s fire adds a little more to that, ensuring that the candles can never go out, they can only be put out by Katsuki.”

“They can’t even be put out by rain?” Red asked.

Camie shook her head, staring at the magic circle, “Nope. But we should put a fence around them. If a candle gets knocked over, it won’t be lit in the good way.”

“Oh, uh, sure. I don’t know if we have anything.”

“I know for a fact that you do,” Camie said, “S’in the garage.”

“I can’t go in there.”

Camie stared at him for a moment before her eyes widened, “Ah. Right. Stay here, I’ll get it.”

He stayed put as Camie went inside. Luckily, he was right by a window that had been left ajar, so he could hear a little bit of the conversation.

“Hey, Kacchan!”

“For the love of God, don’t call me that. What do you want now?”

“I need the keys to the garage.”

There was a beat of silence before Katsuki replied.

“Why?”

“Because we need to put up a fence around your candles. Fence stuff is in the garage.”

“He can’t go in there.”

“Duh, brosef,” Camie scoffed, “I’ll just go by myself. No matter how creepy it is.”

“Fuck it,” Katsuki huffed, “I’ll go myself. Don’t need you fucking around in there, it’s way too delicate. Go get Red so he can keep an eye on the food while I set it up. And make sure he doesn’t see the garage.”

Sure enough, Camie came over a moment later, hands stuffed in her pockets.

“So, duderino, Katsuki wants you to keep an eye on the food while he gets some schtuff from the garage.”

“I thought you were getting it?” Red asked, “Katsuki doesn’t really trust me with food.”

Camie shrugged, “You know how Katsuki is, so possessive of his stuff.”

Red nodded, and wondered how Camie learned to lie so well.

He went inside and passed Katsuki on his way out, who was grumbling to himself.

“What should I do?” Red asked him.

“Just stir the pot so it doesn’t boil over,” Katsuki said as he continued to walk to the garage.

Red went inside, followed by Camie. He went to the pot, where Katsuki was making curry, and began to stir it.

“So you and Katsuki good?”

“Yeah,” Red said, which was mostly true, “We had a couple of fights, but I’ve been able to get out of the house a few times, take a ride to the ocean and along the cliffs. That’s helped a lot.”

Camie hummed in agreement, sitting at the counter behind Red, playing with the salt and pepper shakers, which were shaped like skulls for some reason.

“Has Katsuki given you any deets?”

Red shook his head, staring at the red curry in the pot, “Not really. He did explain to me that everything is kind of in a delicate balance though.”

Camie sighed, “We’ve never dealt with something like this before, even our masters.”

Red frowned, “Seriously? Isn’t your master a kitsune? Wouldn’t they be like, a thousand years old?”

Camie nodded, “Yeah. New things happen all the time, fam. This time, it was just the wrong mix of different magics, and Katsuki forgot to factor one of them into account.” Camie froze then, and looked up at Red in fear, “Don’t blame him, tho. He’s amazing at what he does, but he’s still learning. He’s never done anything remotely close to this before, and the magic that he forgot about was pretty complicated.”

“It’s alright,” Red assured with a smile, “I get it. I don’t really know what’s happened, but mistakes are made. And besides, we’re alright for the most part, right? I’m alive, we’re all alive, and we have a chance at saving Kirishima and getting my memory back.”

Camie smiled, “You are one optimistic dude, my guy.”

Just then, the phone rang. Not the landline, but Katsuki’s cellphone which had been left on the counter. Camie reached over, saw the caller ID, smiled, then answered in her best Katsuki impression, which was spot-on.

“The fuck do you want, _Deku?”_

Red snorted and Camie managed to keep quiet.

“No need to sound angry all the time, jeez,” Red heard on the other line, “Shouto and I need to pick up that dish from your place still, thought we could swing by and grab it, say hi to Red while we’re there.”

“Fine,” Camie replied in Bakugou’s voice, “I’m in the middle of making dinner, mom’s curry.”

“Oh, nice! Have room for two more?”

“Tch, whatever. Just don’t expect me to make extra.”

“Haha, sure, Kacchan. We’ll be over around seven?”

“Or you could just die.”

“Seven sounds good! See you then!”

Izuku apparently hung up after that, and the two in the kitchen burst out laughing.

“That’s so mean,” Red said between laughs.

“Eh, Katsuki’s an asshole. He deserves it.”

“You should probably let him know we’re having more people over in less than an hour.”

“Oh tru, fam.” Camie got up and went onto the porch, yelling from there, “Ayo, Shouto and Izuku are coming over for dinner!”

**“WHAT?”**

Camie snickered to herself, “Yeah, at seven! So hurry up and come make the food!”

Katsuki then let loose a heavy string of curse words as Camie laughed, returning to the kitchen, “He’s almost done.”

“He’s going to kill you one of these days,” Red said with a smile.

Camie scowled and held out her hands as if she wanted to strangle Red, “Oooh, you have _no_ idea how much I wanna make a joke here fam.”

“You can tell it to me after I get my memories back,” Red said, “I think I’ve already got like, three jokes that Katsuki owes me.”

“His jokes are worth the wait,” Camie agreed, coming to sit back down. They were quiet then, until Red couldn’t stand it anymore.

“I just don’t get it,” he said, speaking quietly as he stared into the pot, “Why we can’t trust this kitsune, but we can trust you.”

“It’s so hard to explain, even if I didn’t have to hide anything from you,” Camie explained, “We kitsune...well, like I said, we’re tricksters, we love mucking up lives, myself included. Some of us are harmless and just pull pranks, make life hard for assholes, that jazz.  Others are less kind. It takes years of careful manipulation and tip-toe conversations to figure one kind from the other.”

“That still doesn’t explain why I should trust you.”

Camie sighed, “Do you trust Katsuki?”

Red stopped and turned to face her, “No.”

“You’re lying.”

Red frowned, “How do you know?”

Camie scoffed, “I make it my job to know when I’m being lied to. Ignoring that, I know you Red, and I know Katsuki.”

Red sighed, “Yeah, you’re right. I do trust him. I shouldn’t, but I do.”

“You _should_ ,” Camie insisted, more serious now, “Katsuki may seem like a prick – a cactus, if you will – but he’s a good guy. He’ll do anything for the people he cares about. He was willing to risk everything for this operation.”

“So because I trust Katsuki, I should trust you by extension?”

“Yeah,” Camie said, “and brosef, I know you’re getting tired of hearing this, but I swear that everything will make sense once this is over.”

Just then, Katsuki came back inside and narrowed his eyes at the two, “The fuck you been talking about?”

“Chill, fam,” Camie said with a laugh, “can two bros not converse?”

“You got a big mouth,” Katsuki said, going to the kitchen to wash his hands in the sink, “What did she tell you?”

“That I should trust you,” Red replied.

“Fuck yeah you should trust me,” Katsuki scoffed, “You’ve been with me for like, a month and a half and I haven’t harvested a single organ. _Don’t_ –” he suddenly snapped, turning to face Camie and scowling, “– you _dare_ make the joke I know you’re going to make.”

“I’ll add that to the list of jokes you need to explain once I get my memories back,” Red said with a laugh, “Although I’m not sure if I wanna hear a joke that involves you harvesting my organs.”

The three of them laughed then, Katsuki taking over for Red in the kitchen. He went and sat beside Camie, who then began to complain about a rather rude lady from the mainland who had commissioned her to do a landscape oil painting, but was displeased with the way Camie had painted the sea and so did not want to pay the agreed amount.

“Maybe I’ll curse the damn thing,” Camie said thoughtfully, “any suggestions?”

“Set her on fire,” Katsuki replied.

“Katsuki!” Red gasped, but Camie just shook her head.

“Nah fam, fox fire doesn’t bind well to paint, especially oil. Maybe if I curse it to look like it moves, but only to her.”

“That would drive her insane,” Red agreed.

“So maybe I’ll do that...but idk man, she deserves something a little worse. She’s like, the human embodiment of where you see a picture and you _know_ Lucky Luciano is there, but you can’t find him, and his presence haunts you.”

Before Red could ask Camie what the hell she was talking about, there was a knock at the door.

“I’ll get it!” She said cheerfully, hopping off of her stool and going to the door, opening it to see Shouto and Izuku.

“Lemme guess,” Izuku said with a smile, “Kacchan didn’t invite us over.”

“Nope! Come on in!”

Izuku chuckled to himself and the two walked in. Red noticed that Shouto’s two-toned hair was tied up in a messy bun.

“Hey Red, long time no see!”

“Hey guys,” he greeted happily, “and yeah, it’s good to see you, now that I don’t have to hide in the wardrobe.”

“Oi, not enough space for all of you in here, get outside,” Katsuki barked at them, “I’m almost done, so get the picnic table ready!”

The dinner was pleasant, and a welcome change for Red.

He hadn’t been around this many people at once since he had come out of the bog, and he was loving the company. Izuku and Camie were pretty chatty, often poking fun at Katsuki as well as each other. Shouto was fairly quiet for the most part, piping up every now and then. Red felt like he had known these people for years, which he guessed he kind of did, just didn’t remember it.

At one point, the discussion turned towards their jobs, then towards a new police campaign.

“Yeah,” Red recalled, “I remember you guys mentioning that the last time you were here. I wouldn’t think that a police force this small would do campaigns.”

“We usually don’t,” Izuku explained, whom he had learned was a detective, “but there’s been a lot of magical activity lately, with more than a couple of crimes committed by local creatures. The shrinekeepers, mages, and others like us usually handle it on our own, but there’ve been a few cases where the perpetrators were more human than magic, so they fall under the police’s jurisdiction.”

“But the police can’t use magic,” Shouto said coldly, “not while in uniform, nor on duty, when they need it most.”

“So the coppers are trying to get the public to approve of magic in uniform,” Camie added, “painting the magic users in a gucci light, proposing toight laws, and protecting the community.”

“And it’s times like this that we _need_ uniformed officers to be able to use their magic,” Katsuki grumbled, stabbing at his curry.

“Especially with Stain on the loose,” Shouto said.

The table fell silent, with the others giving varying looks to Todoroki; Katsuki was furious, Izuku was exasperated, Camie was awkward, and Red was in shock.

“He’s still out there?” He finally cried, “How do we know he’s not in the bushes, watching us, right now?”

“Oh,” Shouto said, finally realizing his mistake.

“Katsuki told me he was on the run, but that was almost two months ago!” Red exclaimed.

“He’s dangerous, even for us,” Izuku said, “we have a lot of information...but we don’t know what he’s capable of, how much he knows. He’s magical, that’s for sure, but we have no idea who he works for or what kind of magic he can do. No one has survived to tell us.”

“Except me, right?”

There was a beat of silence around the table before Katsuki spoke, “Yeah, but you came way too fucking close for comfort, plus you don’t have your memory.”

“He’s not after you anymore,” Izuku assured him quickly, “Except for us and our masters, no one knows you’re alive.”

“Good,” Red said with a smile, trying to lift the mood, “I like it when I don’t have serial killers out for my blood.”

The rest of the table laughed, perhaps with a little bit of unease, but nevertheless happy to have loosened the tension.

After dinner, Shouto, Camie, and Katsuki were at the circle, offering suggestions to each other to make it more effective. Red watched from the porch corner as Izuku came up beside him.

“Hey Red,” he said as he leaned on the railing beside Red, “I don’t know if I could’ve stayed here.”

“What?”

“Well,” Izuku began, “Katsuki’s asking a lot of you. We all are. I think there are very few people who would comply in the way that you have, and we admire you for that.”

Red scoffed, “You admire me for my blind trust in a complete stranger who lives in the middle of nowhere?”

“Yeah,” Izuku said earnestly, “if it was me, I’d probably have been gone by day 3. But then again, I also can’t imagine living alone with Kacchan for more than 24 hours.”

“Why?” Red asked, “He really is a nice guy. I thought you two were friends?”

“We are,” Izuku assured, “we were neighbours as kids but um, well I guess you could say we had a rocky relationship. He wasn’t kind to me when we were younger, but we were just kids, y’know? Anyways, we’re good now, but he certainly won’t be the best man at my wedding.”

“Fair enough,” Red conceded, “I wish I could say I knew him well enough to agree with you, but I hardly know anything about him.”

“At heart, he’s a good guy,” Izuku said, “just abrasive. And this whole thing...it’s been putting him under an incredible amount of stress.”

“I know. I wish I could help, I want this to end too, but I can tell he’s worried about Kirishima.”

Izuku stared at Red for a moment before speaking carefully, “Red...what do you know about Kirishima?”

“That he was close to Katsuki,” he replied, picking at the peeling paint on the railing, “That he was murdered – probably by Stain – and he’s caught in some kind of limbo. That I’m very similar to Kirishima somehow. And that he was probably Katsuki’s….” Red didn’t want to finish that sentence.

“From my understanding,” Izuku began, obviously choosing his words carefully, “you and Kirishima were attacked by Stain. Katsuki was able to save you, but not Kirishima. But because he saved you, he has a chance to bring Kirishima back. It’s a small chance, and risky as all hell, but it’s a chance.”

“So then, I gotta wonder,” Red said, looking back to Katsuki and the others, “would he have saved me, even if it meant Kirishima wouldn’t be coming back?”

“100%,” Izuku said with no hesitation, “I don’t have a doubt in my mind about that.”

“But then I’d just be a replacement for Kirishima, wouldn’t I?”

“Okay,” Izuku said, standing up properly, “I’m going to try and explain this best I can. Let’s say that you have a dog, and you love that dog. It’s been your best friend for years, and you love it a lot. Then that dog dies.”

“Thanks?” Red said warily, “I really needed to be reminded that dogs die.”

“No,” Izuku said with a laugh, “oh I shouldn’t laugh at that. No, that’s not what I’m saying, just bear with me. So the dog dies. And you miss that dog a lot, so you decide to get another dog. You go the shelter and find a dog that looks almost exactly like the old one, but not quite. It reminds you of your old dog, but it’s not the same. So you adopt it, and you love this dog. So tell me, is that dog a replacement for the old one?”

“No,” Red said with a frown, “it’s a different dog, like you said. And you can’t replace the old dog.”

“But will you love it any less?”

“It’s a dog, I don’t think that’s possible.” Red sighed at Izuku’s disappointed face and continued, “Alright, fine. I wouldn’t love it any less, but I guess I wouldn’t love it the same? Like, I’d love that dog, but not like I did with the old one because that’s gone now.”

“So do you see my point?”

“....Are you comparing me to a dog?”

Izuku laughed loudly and clapped a hand on Red’s shoulder, grinning at him, “Even with amnesia, you’re still the same Red. But seriously, you’re not anyone’s replacement, and you’re not second best. You’re not quite Kirishima, but your own person.”

“How did I know Kirishima?” Red asked, desperate for a solid answer for once, “Why am I the one that’s so connected?”

“I can’t say,” Izuku said with a sigh, “You’re probably sick of hearing that, right?”

“You have no idea.”


	19. Roll Credits x 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this isn't the end, I'm just making a cinemasins joke

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey y'all! I'm going on a trip and I have an exam right before that so I have no time to update, I'll be back on in a couple of weeks, should update soon after that. I know it's been a bit cuz kiribaku week, so I wanted to pump something out until I got back. Consider this sort of a mid-season finale? Yeah. Anyways, happy reading!

After the dinner party, Katsuki had been acting weird.

Well, weird for him, because the way that Katsuki usually acted was already pretty weird. 

He was more awkward around Red, and refused to touch him. Katsuki wasn’t a super touchy person to begin with, but he had never had problems with an arm slung over the shoulder or other casual touches. Now, whenever this happened, Katsuki would jerk away and disappear into the garage. Red had stopped touching him altogether and had started putting pillows between them when they slept. This had begun to make Red more irate, as he was lonely and now touch-starved.

A few days after the dinner, Red had come out of the shower and heard something in the main room. He put on some comfy shorts and started to towel off his hair as he walked into the living room. He saw that Katsuki was sat on the couch, watching the TV. Red made his way over to the couch and leaned in, looking over Katsuki’s shoulder.

“Hey, whatcha watching?”

Katsuki flinched hard and whipped his head around, scowling at Red. He pulled back and laughed.

“Sorry man, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“S’fine,” he mumbled, quickly turning away from Red and getting up, “TV’s yours.”

“Where are you going?” Red asked.

“Garage.” Katsuki was already halfway to the door, not looking back at Red.

“Why?” He demanded, “You’ve been in there every single day! I’m lonely man, and I kinda wanted to get out of the house again.”

“Maybe some other day,” Katsuki said, still not looking back.

“So maybe I’ll just go on my own!” Red snapped.

That made him stop. He didn’t quite face Red, but he was looking out the corner of his eyes, “You know you can’t.”

“And who’s going to stop me?” He asked, crossing his arms, towel around his neck, “You’re in the garage. Windows are blacked out. You wouldn’t see me leave.”

“You can’t open the gate.”

“True, but I can hop the fence. It’s not hard, Katsuki.”

“Have you left the property?” He suddenly demanded, eyes wide with panic. He turned around, finally facing Red.

“No,” he replied coolly, “I haven’t. But the fence is only like, up to my waist. I could leave pretty easily.”

“So why don’t you?” Katsuki spat, his features twisting into anger, “Why stay here then? Why bother with me? No, never fucking mind,I’m not having this conversation until you put on a shirt.”

“No, we are having this conversation now, before you get a chance to run off!” Red said, then throwing his hands up in frustration, “And I stay because this is bigger than me! I stay here and put up with your secrecy and your magic and your weirdness because someone else is in danger! But that doesn’t mean that you get to act like an asshole while I act like nothing’s wrong!”

“So how you would you like us to act?” Katsuki demanded, taking a step closer, “Hm?”

“We should act like real people!” Red cried, “I wish we could do what  _ real  _ people do.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Katsuki asked, getting closer.

“I may not know much, but I know that this isn’t normal!” Red exclaimed, “I know none of this is, but we could at least try to  _ act  _ like real people. We could act like friends do.”

“And what do friends do that we don’t?”

“Friends don’t avoid each other every time they touch,” Red cried, “friends don’t keep friends locked up inside the house in silence. Real people don’t do that Katsuki.”

“Fine, I’ve been an asshole,” he admitted angrily, now quite close to Red, “But what the  _ fuck  _ does acting like real people have anything to do with anything? Is this not real enough? Am I not real enough?”

“It’s not like that,” Red said, “I mean like….other people. I know we’re not like other people because I’m a legally dead amnesiac while you’re some kind of magic skeleton man, but can we at least pretend to be people? Lately you’ve been so awkward and we hardly talk and I’m lonely. I’ve got no one else, Katsuki.”

“Look, I’m sorry,” Katsuki huffed, seeming to deflate, “I’m not trying to be an asshole. It’s just….”

“Just what?” Red demanded.

“What do you want to do, that real people do and we don’t?”

“What?” Red asked, taken aback, “What do you mean?”

“What do you want us to do?” Katsuki continued, “What would make us more like your idea of ‘real people’?”

“Well…” Red said hesitantly, “I would like to talk, like real people do. No dodging questions every other sentence, or talk about magic. We can talk about the weather, or the movies, or whatever.”

“Okay,” Katsuki said as he nodded his head, “Anything else?”

“I’d like to touch like real people do,” Red continued, “I dunno about you man, but I’m touch-starved. I was fine, but you’ve been acting weird since the dinner, and I miss just being casual with you.”

Katsuki stared at him for a moment and stepped even closer before speaking, “That’s fair. Camie said something to me after dinner and I’ve been thinking it over, but I’ll get the fuck over it. What else?”

“I’d like to go out, like real people do,” Red said, confidence building, happy with the direction that the conversation had taken, “We’ve only left the property a couple of times, and I get the danger, but I need it. I need the change of pace.”

Katsuki was now so close to Red that he could see his own reflection in Katsuki’s eyes. He started to wish that he had put on a shirt.

“There’s one more thing, isn’t there?” Katsuki said.

There was, but Red didn’t really want to say it. He wanted it, but he was afraid. Things were going well. He did not dare upset the precarious balance.

When Red didn’t answer, Katsuki continued, “I know what it is. You’re not subtle, never have been. I thought I could ignore it, but Camie….” Katsuki scoffed, “Fucking nosy bitch won’t leave me alone when it comes to you. She saw what I was too stubborn to admit.”

“What’s that?” Red asked.

“I think you know.”

Red thought he knew, but what if he was wrong?

“I want the same thing,” Katsuki said, looking Red right in the eyes, “I want the exact fucking thing you do. But I also want to hear you say it.”

Red took a deep breath and returned Katsuki’s gaze as he spoke, mustering every ounce of courage he had.

“I want to... kiss... like real people do.”

Katsuki’s face twisted into a grin. It was cocky, and almost smirk-like, and very Katsuki.

“That’s what I wanted to fucking hear.”

Before Red could really process what had just happened, Katsuki reached up, placed his hand on Red’s cheek and closed his eyes, putting his lips ever-so-gently on Red’s.

Red hesitated only for a moment before returning the kiss, putting his hands on Katsuki’s waist. After a moment of pure bliss, the two broke apart.

“Is this...really okay?” Red asked, reality coming back to him rather quickly.

“If it wasn’t, I wouldn’t be doing this.”

“But...I thought...Kirishima…?”

“Don’t worry about that,,” Katsuki assured, “I promise you, Kirishima is going to kick my ass for taking this long to kiss you. Have any memories returned?”

“No,” Red said, shaking his head, “nothing.”

“So we’re fine,” Katsuki said, still grinning, “We can kiss like real people do, as much as we fucking want.”


	20. Ignorance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red loves the roses, Naozumi doesn't like being ignored

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this one is short but idk it felt right

Red found that he couldn’t be happier.

It had been about a week since he and Katsuki kissed, and he was quite pleased to say that they were an official couple. Red doubted that anyone else knew, except for maybe Camie, but he found that he didn’t really mind. 

They had been taking things slow, which Red was thankful for. They were both pretty unsure of well, _everything_ , but it was okay. Red trusted Katsuki more than anything and he was also getting constant cuddles when Katsuki was home, which was a huge improvement. 

At the moment, Red was in the garden, tending to his roses. Katsuki had bought a white trellis and the two had put it up a couple of days ago. Hopefully the growing roses would attach to it and start to climb. But at the moment, they were still in varying stages of bloom. The single pink rose was now in full bloom, while a few red roses had begun to show petals. They were coming along a little slower, and there were still plenty others that hadn’t opened at all, but Red loved his roses nonetheless.

As he was trimming, he pricked his finger on one of the thorns of the red rose.

“Oh!” He cried, quickly pulling his finger back to inspect it. He could see the spot where the thorn had pierced the skin, but there was no blood. He frowned and looked at it closer, jumping when he heard a voice behind him.

“Peculiar, isn’t it?”

Red scowled to himself and refused to turn around, ignoring the voice.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it, Red?” Naozumi purred.

Red didn’t even turn around. He was happy with Katsuki. He didn’t want to see Naozumi anymore.

“My, those flowers are quite lovely,” he continued cheerfully, “I wonder if Katsuki will keep them up after you’re gone. I’m sure Kirishima would, but I’m starting to lose any hope that he’s coming back.”

A beat of silence.

“I know you can hear me, Red.”

Red didn’t reply, merely snipped off a stray branch.

“I don’t know what you’ve been telling each other,” Naozumi said, his voice becoming more frustrated, “But things haven’t changed. You’re still going to be sacrificed whenever it’s convenient, and Katsuki is going to move on with his life. If you stay with him, you’ll just be a faded memory.”

Another branch.

“He’s hiding something, can’t you tell?” Naozumi snarled, “How are you so blind? He keeps so many secrets, and you just go along with it. He’s warded me out and surrounded you with powerful magics. Don’t you think that’s a little suspicious?”

Oh, Red had missed a weed. He decided to pull it out right away.

“You’re ignoring me,” Naozumi said, sounding hurt, “I’ve been the one telling the truth this entire time, I’ve kept you on your toes for your own good. Can’t you see it, Red? I still love you.”

Red froze, but only for a moment. Camie said it herself – kitsunes lie.

“Fine,” Naozumi hissed, and Red heard the fence creak as he stood up, “Ignore me. Follow Katsuki like a little lost puppy and let him sacrifice you for someone you hardly know, you’re just a placeholder. Once Kirishima is back, Katsuki will be happy and in love, you’ll be gone, and I’ll be the only person who misses you. You can continue living on in ignorance, but not for long. Time is running out, Red, and soon you’ll be gone forever.”

There was a rustling in the undergrowth as Naozumi scampered off. Red waited a full minute before turning around to make sure he was really gone. When he didn’t see the kitsune, he sighed to himself. He trusted Katsuki and Naozumi had given him no real evidence as to why Red should trust him. He just had a silver tongue, and Red was smarter than that.

_ And yet... _

He looked down at the mark on his finger and frowned. He had pricked his finger pretty hard, surely there should have been blood. And yet, there was none.

He shook his head and pulled another weed. He was being silly. Not every prick of a finger drew blood, and not every rose thorn was so sharp.


	21. Getting Closer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ehhh I'll put something here later

Red had been staring at the last drawing in the sketchbook for a good hour.

            It called to him in a way that none of the other drawings did, and it was driving him nuts. He had even gone so far as to pick up a pencil, but he had yet to make a mark. The black lines just stared at him. He stared back.

            It was quite frustrating.

            He wanted to finish it, but he had no idea how. The lines were obscure, quite different from the rest of the drawings. He wondered if this was how they had all started out, or if he had been experimenting with a new style before he had lost his memory.

            With a huff, he tossed the book on the bed beside him and flopped back, the bottom half of his body hanging off of the bed. He turned his head to the side to look at it, scowling. As he did, he recognized a shape in the lines.

            He gasped and quickly picked up the book, hurriedly sketching in the lines to complete the image in his head. Or, at the very least, just enough for him to remember later.

            He was so engrossed in the drawing that he didn’t even hear the door open, nor did he notice someone enter the room until his name was called.

            “Oi, Red!”

            He jumped, his pencil tip snapping against the paper and creating a jerking line off to the side.

            “Shit, Katsuki!” Red cried, starting to erase the line, “Don’t scare me like that!"

            “I wasn’t even quiet,” he said with a chuckle as he came and sat down beside Red on the bed, “Whatcha doin?”

            “Drawing,” Red said, brushing away the eraser sheddings, “I don’t know if this is what the drawing was originally supposed to be, but I think I like it.”

            “What is it?” Katsuki asked, leaning on Red to get a better look, “It’s just scratch marks right now.”

            “I’ll tell you when it’s done,” Red replied, jerking his shoulder playfully to get Katsuki off, “It’s a surprise.”

            “Alright, whatever,” Katsuki replied, “Oh, that reminds me – I’ve got some good news.”

            Red perked up, “Really? What is it?”

            “The police’ve got a new lead on Stain, and they’re closer than they’ve been in a long time.”

            “That’s great!” Red cried, “So they’ll catch him soon?”

            “I don’t know,” Katsuki admitted, running his hands through his hair, “there’s still a lot that we don’t know...but we know who he works for, so that’s a big step forward.”

            “Can I ask who it is?” Red prompted.

            “It’s a Blood Mage,” Katsuki said bitterly, “There are only a few on the island, and only one who would apprentice someone such as Stain.”

            “I’m guessing they’re bad news?”

            “Extremely bad news,” Katsuki said, staring intensely at Red, “he’s one of the oldest here on the island, and is responsible for at least fifty kidnappings and murders within the past hundred years.”

            “Has he been caught?”

            “No,” Katsuki said bitterly, “He’s too powerful. Even if all of the mages and the police on the island worked together, it wouldn’t be enough.”

            “What about the spirits?” Red prompted.

            “Spirits are fickle,” Katsuki grumbled, “they don’t like working together, even at the best of times. The only way they’ll bother is if another spirit is directly involved, and it’s gotta be a pretty powerful one even then.”

            “What about the police campaign?” Red asked, “How’s that going?”

            “Slow,” Katsuki grumbled, “the public is divided on it. People like me are mostly for it, but the rest of the islanders are a little nervous.”

            “Why?” Red frowned, “Doesn’t everyone on the island know about magic and that stuff?”

            “Yeah,” Katsuki replied, “but it’s…complicated.  People are mostly fine with us, they come for our services, they respect our ways. Opinions differ, especially considering what kind of magic you do, but the locals don’t like magic in the workplace. It makes them nervous. I guess they think we’ll become corrupted, or some other bullshit like that.”

            “So what’s gonna happen?”

            “There’s going to be a town meeting in a couple of weeks,” Katsuki said, “Then a vote the day after on whether or not cops can use magic on the job.”

            “That’s great,” Red said, “but…I kinda meant for me. What’s next?”

            “We’re setting up a meeting with my master, Akiko,” Katsuki said, “by next week. Shouto, Deku, and Deku’s master are all going to help us out, making it as safe as possible.”

            “Isn’t Midoriya apprenticed to a dragon?” Red asked, “How are we supposed to be quiet with a _dragon_?”

            “We have our ways,” Katsuki said with a grin, “And you’ll be happy to know that the meeting will be by the ocean.”

            “Aw yes!” Red cried, “I already miss it.”

            “I’m sure you do,” Katsuki replied, getting up and moving towards the door, “I’m going to start on dinner, any requests?”

            Red shrugged, “I’m good with whatever.”

            Katsuki nodded and left the room. Red looked down at the sketchbook.

            He felt like things were coming to a close. More clues were being found about Stain, knowledge was being given to him more freely, there would be a decision about magic cops soon, and he was supposed to meet Akiko. Everything just felt like it was happening so fast, and Red couldn’t help but once again wonder where he would be left at the end of it all.

            Katsuki seemed happy with him, and he had now begun to doubt that he had ever been romantically involved with Kirishima, or at least maybe not right before he died. But still…he wondered if he would be the same person with his memories, how that would change things.

            It was such an odd thing, he found. He should not have been as happy as he was, considering his situation. But, he was happy. He was happy in the cottage, he was happy with his roses, he was happy with the day trips to the sea, and he was more than happy with Katsuki. Once he got his memories back and Kirishima returned, everything would be different.

            Maybe he didn’t want his memories back after all.


	22. Meeting at The Beach

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One new face and one old one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey y'all! Here you go, here's a fun chapter!!!! Also point of order, I went back and changed it so that All Might has only ever been refered to as All Might. He's only called Toshinori in private
> 
> Also!!! I'll be at Anime North this weekend! You'll probably see me Saturday and Sunday! I'll probably be wearing a Bakugou t-shirt, maybe not. But look for a group of really cool cosplayers and then one blonde girl who's not dressed up – that's me lmao. If y'all want, hit me up! Who knows, I might give away a hint or two if you recognzie me lol
> 
> Anyways, happy reading! :)

Red had no idea what to wear.

He was supposed to leave to meet Katsuki’s master in less than an hour, and he was starting to panic. Should he dress nice, or casual? Where would they be going? What would they be doing, exactly? Should he wear a tie?

“Red,” Katsuki sighed when he entered and saw him staring at the wardrobe, "Just pick something.”

“But what?” Red cried, “I’m meeting your master! I don’t wanna look like an idiot!”

“Wear jeans and a nice shirt to go with the leather jacket,” Katsuki suggested, “We’re going by the ocean, so wear something warm.”

“Why’re we going there?” Red asked, “Not that I’m complaining, but I’m curious.”

“At this point, we’re being closely watched,” Katsuki explained, “The enemy will be expecting us to go to the shrine, or for my master to come here. If we go with a small group with another powerful spirit, you won’t be noticed.”

 “Which is amazing, considering my hair is bright red,” Red said with a laugh, looking at himself in the mirror, “Is my hair naturally red? Because it doesn’t look like I have roots. I’ve been here a couple of months and I don’t think my hair has grown at all.”

“Bigger fish to fry here, Red.”

“Right, sorry,” Red mumbled, going back to rifling through the wardrobe, “So…tell me about your master.”

“Her name is Akiko,” Katsuki began, sitting down on the bed and watching Red, “and she’s a yosei.”

“You’ve never explained what a yosei is,” Red noted.

“If I do, then you’ll get your memory back,” Katsuki said, “All you need to know is that they’re spirits closely associated with the dead. Akiko can be strict and rough, but she’s kind at hard.”

“Like master like student,” Red said with a laugh.

Katsuki tossed a pillow at Red, hitting him square in the face.

“Shaddup,” Katsuki laughed, “Anyways, her name is Akiko, and you should refer to her as Master Akiko.”

“Got it,” Red said, “Okay I’ve picked out an outfit, get out so I can get dressed.”

Katsuki got off the bed and left the room, shutting the door behind him. As Red started to get dressed, he started to worry a little more. Things must have been coming to a close if he was meeting Katsuki’s master.

He decided not to stress about that at the moment – he needed to get dressed.

He chose a plain, soft yellow and blue ombre shirt, as well as a necklace with a sharktooth on it. He wondered if it was real.

He also managed to find a lighter pair of jeans, and found himself pleased with his outfit. The only problem was the hair.

Red usually just kept his hair loose, half-up, or in a lazy ponytail. This was no problem, as he rarely left the house. But now that he was actually supposed to dress nice, he had no idea what to do.

“Maybe I should braid it…” he wondered, pulling it to the side. He managed to braid it, but strands on the opposite side fell out. He tried again, to no avail.

Finally, Katsuki came back into the room, “What the hell is taking you so long?”

Red turned and smiled sheepishly, “I don’t know what to do with my hair.”

Katsuki huffed and walked over to him, “Sit on the bed, I’ll do it for you.”

Red nodded and did as he was told, sitting on the edge of the bed. Katsuki went into the bathroom and returned with a small baggie of tiny plastic hairbands. He settled himself in behind Red and started to brush his hair back. Red felt him start braiding at the crown of his head.

“What’re you going to do?”

“Dutch fishtail.”

“Because those words definitely mean something to me.”

“You’ll see in a minute, be patient.”

 Red hummed, leaning into Katsuki’s touch. He really liked having his hair played with, and Katsuki’s hands were very gentle.

“Your hair is so damn thick,” Katsuki mumbled, “I wish I could grow it out like this, but it’s way too thin.”

“I’m sure you’d look great either way,” Red assured. Katsuki just scoffed in response. “Hey, when did you learn to braid, anyways?”

“I’ve been working with my parents on set since I was a kid,” Katsuki explained, “They’re designers, but they also do their own shoots, so they gotta oversee everything. So I learned everything – photography, makeup, hair, basic set design, basic graphic design.”

“Oh. Cool.”

Katsuki chuckled, “Glad you think so. We used to do this all the time, you know.”

“We did?”

Red felt the hands on his hair freeze for a moment before continuing, “I shouldn’t’ve said that. You’re done.”

“Thanks.” Red felt Katsuki get up and slide off the bed, “Do you mind taking a picture so I can see it, please?”

“Sure.” A moment later, Katsuki handed Red his phone. He looked at it, and had to admit that he was really impressed.

The braid was thick, but made up of thin strands. It also seemed to rise off of his head, which looked really cool. It suited him.

“Thanks,” Red said again, handing Katsuki’s phone back to him, “it looks great.”

Katsuki scoffed, “As if that’s any surprise. Now c’mon, we should get going.”

* * *

Red was not happy to find that they were the last to arrive.

They had taken the bike to the ocean cliff, and Katsuki showed him a secret path behind a mound of boulders, completely hidden from view. They had slowly made their way down the cliff path and onto the rocky beach at the bottom of the cliffs. Red was glad he had worn warm clothes, as the wind whipped around him and the salt of the sea mist stung.

When they got to the bottom, he saw a group of five people; Izuku, Shouto, Camie, a tall and sickly-looking man with wild blond hair and robes the colour of the sea, and a beautiful woman with fiery red hair and a black funeral kimono. Red noticed that her kimono was crossed right over left – the way the dead wore their kimonos. He wasn’t sure what to do with that information.

When the two approached the group, Katsuki bowed. Quickly, Red followed.

“Hello and thank you for meeting us here, All Might and Master Akiko.”

“Happy to help,” the man, apparently All Might, said with a smile. He had large teeth.

“Rise,” the woman said firmly. The two men did as they were told.

Now that they were closer, Red was able to get a closer look at the two newcomers. All Might’s robes were not just the colour the sea, but seemed to be made of it. They moved and flowed around him like the waves, the edges becoming white seafoam. Red noticed that they hung off of him, and it gave the appearance that he was drowning. All Might also hard a harsh, angular face with deep sunken eyes. The only thing that confirmed that he had eyes was a pair of bright blue irises poking out in the shadows.

The woman whom Red could only assume as Akiko was beautiful with pale skin, straight red hair, large eyes, and red lips. She was unsettling, though, because she looked like a statue. Despite the wind on the beach, neither her hair nor her robes ever moved, and she stood perfectly still, not even blinking. There was something about her eyes too… they were dark and bothered him, but he couldn’t figure out why….

“Red,” she then spoke, her eyes boring into him, “do you know why you are here?”

“Um…” Red glanced at Katsuki and saw him nod, “Because you wanted to meet me, and this was the safest place?”

Akiko nodded, “Correct. All Might was kind enough to join us today to keep the enemies off of our scent.”

“It’s hard to ignore the presence of a dragon,” All Might said with a small chuckle, “So I doubt they’ll notice a few extra souls.”

“Wait, hold up,” Red said, staring at the twig of a man before him, drowning in his own clothes, “ _You’re_ a _dragon_?”

All Might laughed, “Yes. This form is much easier to take, my boy.”

“All Might is actually the guardian of these cliffs,” Izuku said then, beaming proudly, “So this is one of the safest places on the island!”

“Especially with an elemental mage, three spirit apprentices, and a yosei,” Akiko agreed. Then she stepped towards Red, “Tell me, how are you feeling?”

“I’m alright,” Red said, “A little cold.”

Akiko smiled and put a hand on Red’s cheek. He figured out why her eyes bothered him so much – they didn’t have a reflection of light, or a reflection of anything, really. They were dead eyes.

“Tell me, does my hand feel cold?”

Red frowned, “No, it doesn’t. It doesn’t feel like anything, really.”

Akiko pulled her hand back and began to circle around Red, sizing him up.

“How intriguing. Close enough to not feel the cold, but too far to feel the touch.”

“Is that good or bad?” Katsuki asked, sounding kind of nervous.

“It is very good,” Akiko declared, standing in front of Red again, “Tell me Red, do you have any memories before you woke up in the forest?”

“No,” Red answered honestly, “The closest I’ve got is dreams.”

“Tell me about them.”

“Well,” he began nervously, “I don’t remember them well. I do remember a knife, a pain in my lower stomach and chest, the name Stain,and Katsuki. I see his face a lot.”

“What colour is the knife?”

Red frowned, “I...I don’t know.”

“Is it black?”

Red shrugged, “I don’t remember. I’m sorry.”

“Good,” Akiko said, “Now tell me what you know about Kirishima.”

Red felt himself getting quite nervous, but he didn’t know why.

“He was close to Katsuki,” he began, “and he was well-liked on the island. He and I are similar, but I don’t know how. I think we were both attacked by Stain. He…” Red took a breath, “he killed Kirishima, and he tried to kill me. From my understanding, we were both thrown in a bog in the woods. Katsuki found me and managed to save me, but couldn’t save Kirishima. But he can maybe save Kirishima through me.”

“Do you think that Kirishima and yourself are somehow connected?”

Red nodded, “Yes, but I don’t know how. Maybe we were brothers?”

Akiko smiled dryly, “You know I can’t give an answer to that, Red. Now, have you been in contact with anyone besides the people standing with us today?”

Red shook his head, “No.”

“I’ve been told that a kitsune has been frequenting your cottage,” Akiko said, circling around Red again, “Have you spoken with him?”

“No,” Red lied.

Akiko came and stood in front of him again, “Try again.”

He stared into her dead eyes and took a shaky breath, “Alright, yes. He’s come by a couple of times, spoke to me. But I never let him in!” He added quickly.

“Did he ever give away any crucial information?” Akiko prompted.

“No, at least, I don’t think so,” Red admitted. It felt a little easier. He was kind of relieved to finally get the weight of Naozumi off his chest, “He, um, he mentioned something about equivalent exchange.”

A wave crashed upon the sand, a little louder than the rest.

“What exactly did he say?” Akiko demanded slowly.

“Not much,” Red said, “he never really says much, just kinda plays games with me. All he mentioned was the word itself, and something about neck...necro…”

“Necromancy?” Akiko prompted.

“Yeah!” Red cried, “That’s it! He said the word, but I don’t know what it means.”

“Good,” Akiko said, “Did he say anything else?”

“He um….” Red glanced at Katsuki and saw him frowning, but he nodded, “He said that I was a sacrifice. That I would be killed in exchange for Kirishima.”

Another wave, this one even louder.

Red looked over Akiko’s shoulder and saw Katsuki turn away, walking back up the path.

“Kacchan!” Izuku cried, stepping forward. All Might put his hand out, and he stopped.

“Just makin’ sure no one’s coming,” Katsuki grumbled, disappearing behind a corner.

“Is there anything else, anything at all?” Akiko asked again.

Red shook his head, “No, that’s everything, I think. He mostly just teased me, tried to make me doubt Katsuki. He’d talk about how Katsuki is hiding something.” Red saw the Camie, Shouto, and Izuku share a look, “I’m not a sacrifice, am I?”

“What is this kitsune’s name?” Akiko asked, her face remaining neutral.

“It’s...Naozumi. But I’m not going to be sacrificed, right?”

Akiko placed a hand on Red’s shoulder, “You must not listen to a word that falls out of that kitsune’s mouth. Every bit of it is a lie, and any gifts he may bring are cursed. I know Naozumi well, and he is no friend to humans. It would be best if Camie gave you a handful of sutras and banishings that you could use. But above all else, there is one thing you must know about a kitsune.” Akiko stared Red right in the eyes and spoke very seriously, “Kitsune can be banished and magicked away, but it is their words that are the most dangerous. Do you understand?”

Nervously, Red nodded.

“Good.” Akiko stepped back and took her hand off of Red’s shoulder, “We will begin preparations for the ceremony. As soon as Stain is caught, we begin. We’re relying on you and your men, Detective Midoriya.”

Izuku nodded seriously, “We’re doing everything in our power. The town meeting is just over a week from now, and the vote the day after. By the end of the month, we’ll know whether we can use our powers or not.”

“Good. You’re free to go, Red,” Akiko told him. Then she reached into her kimono and pulled out a folded piece of paper, “Give this to Katsuki when you get up there.”

“I will,” he said, taking the note. He bowed to her and then to All Might, “Thank you.” Then, he hurried up the path.

When he finally got to the top, he was out of breath.

“Man, that climb is harder than I thought,” he mumbled to himself. He walked out past the boulders and sat Katsuki standing a little ways away, looking out to sea.

“Katsuki!” He cried, but he gave no hint that he had heard Red. He sighed and walked over to him.

“Your master asked me to give this to you.”

“How could you not tell me?”

Red sighed, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, “I’m sorry Katsuki, I just thought that, I dunno, I thought maybe he had a point?”

“You thought he had a point?” Katsuki asked coldly, still not looking at him.

“He gave me answers when you didn’t!” Red defended, “Or, sorta. He mostly just talked in circles, he’s kinda annoying, really.”

“He’s _dangerous_ , Red!” Katsuki snapped, finally turning to face him, “He’s not on our side.”

“It never seemed like he wanted to hurt me...he said that he cared about me.”

“He was _lying_ ,” Katsuki cried, “that’s what kitsunes do!”

“What about Camie?” Red asked.

“She lies all the goddamned time!” He yelled, “Lied to Deku and Halfa about dinner, lied about not being a kitsune, hell, she lies to her own master! For better or worse, all kitsunes lie, it’s who they are. This one is for worse.”

“I’m sorry,” Red apologized again, “I just didn’t know what to do. I was so confused and scared and I didn’t know who I should trust.”

“Me! You should trust me!” Red was surprised to see that tears were welling up in his eyes.

“I know that now,” Red said, “and I do trust you.”

“When was the last time you saw him?” Katsuki demanded.

“He came by after you set up that circle thingy,” Red answered calmly, “He tried talking to me, but I just ignored him. He got mad and then left. I haven’t seen him since, and I haven’t talked to him since before we kissed.”  
Katsuki narrowed his eyes, “You swear?”

Red held up his right hand and placed his left over his heart, “Cross my heart and hope to die.”

Katsuki laughed then, and wiped his eyes, “Holy shit….”

“Another joke I’ll understand once I get my memories back?

Katsuki grinned, “Exactly.” His grin fell, “Sorry for getting so upset.”

“It’s okay,” Red assured, putting a hand on his cheek, “I understand. I should’ve told you in the first place.”

“But I get why you didn’t,” Katsuki replied, leaning into Red’s hand, placing his hand on top. He turned so his lips were touching Red’s palm and spoke quietly, “What did Akiko say?”

“That I was all good,” Red said, “and that we would begin preparations for some ceremony that would be performed as soon as they caught Stain. Oh yeah, she told me to give this to you.”

Red handed the note to Katsuki, who pulled back to read it. Red came to stand beside him, looking over his shoulder. But he found that the note was in a language he didn’t understand.

“What is it?” He asked.

“A list.” Katsuki folded the paper back up and put it in the pocket of his jacket, “Stuff I gotta get, things we gotta do.”

“Is it a lot?”

“Kinda. What we plan to do is very complicated, and pretty dangerous. We need to do as much preparation as possible. If we do this right, then all we gotta do for the actual ceremony is the final step.”

“And that’s what’ll get Kirishima and my memories back?”

Katsuki nodded, back to staring out at the sea, “Yeah. In a few weeks this will all be over.”

Red hummed in agreement, but he found that he couldn’t get excited. After all, Akiko had never denied him being a sacrifice.

 


	23. Cleansing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red needs to clean his soul, yeesh

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey y'alll!!!! Omg we're getting so close, I'm so excited!!!! I only hope that the tension is building enough hehehehehehe. Two more chapters before DISASTER!25 is gonna be a ride lmao.  
> Anyways!! Since we're reachng the end of this fic, I have other WIPs that I wanna do, but I can't do them all at once. I'm thinking of putting up a poll on my tumblr, so you can choose what you want me to do next!  
> Happy Reading!! :)

“I feel stupid.”

“Too bad,” Katsuki replied, walking around him, holding an old leather-bound book in one hand and a tree branch soaked in some kind of liquid in the other. As he circled around Red, he shook the branch at him, splashing the liquid on his bare skin.

The reason why Red felt so stupid was because he stood in the middle of the circle Katsuki and Camie had made, completely naked.

“Why can’t I put some clothes on while we do this?” Red asked, “This is weird.”

“This is  _ not  _ the weirdest thing we’ve done.”

“Uh, it is in my memory. What kind of weird shit do we do?”

“You don’t wanna know,” Katsuki mumbled, his eyes scanning the page, “Just stop complaining. There’s no one even here to see you.”

“The fox could come.”

Katsuki shot him a dangerous look and Red frowned.

“Sorry.”

“S’fine,” he mumbled again, turning back to his book, “Look, just a couple more minutes.”

“As long as we’re done before sunset,” Red said with a sigh, “Then it’ll get way too cold.”

“It’s not going to take that long,” Katsuki assured him, “but because we can’t do one long session, we’ll have to do several short sessions.”

“Is that how you like to do it?” Red asked with a crooked grin, “Rapidfire?”

Katsuki glared at him, but Red decided to take a small victory in the fact that he was blushing the tiniest bit, “Shaddup.”

Red just laughed as Katsuki began to circle him again. 

“So what exactly is this, that we’re doing?” He asked after some time of silence.

“A ritual cleansing,” Katsuki replied, nose buried in the book, “We can’t perform the ritual if we’re dirty.”

“So why not just take a bath?” Red asked.

“It’s a spiritual cleansing, dumbass,” Katsuki said, “A purification of the soul. Yours is particularly fucked up, which is why we have to do this every other day, and one last time under the full moon.”

“Wait, what’s wrong with my soul?” Red cried, his hand drifting to the large scar over his heart.

“A lot,” Katsuki said, “but I can’t tell you that.”

“Right.”

Katsuki sighed and turned to him, scowling, “This is one of those 100% things I can’t tell you. I thought you’d be used to it by now.”

“Nope,” Red replied, “Anyways, what does this ritual entail?”

“A cleansing,” Katsuki started to list off, peering at his book, “a final parting ceremony, and then a ceremony of joining.”

“I don’t like how either of those sound.”

Katsuki huffed and snapped his book shut, “You don’t have to, you just gotta go with it. Now, place your hands on your heart so I can bless you, bitch.”

Red did as he was told, only half-listening when Katsuki began his odd prayer. A ceremony of joining didn’t sound so bad, just a tad ominous. But a final parting ceremony – well, it had the same tone as the final nail in the coffin.

“Okay, we’re done,” Katsuki announced. He snapped his fingers and one of the candles went out, allowing Red a space to pass through. Katsuki held out his hand and Red took it, carefully stepping over the circle and into the rest of their backyard. He found that when he did, he felt a little colder.

Katsuki must have noticed, since he handed Red his housecoat from where it had been laying on the picnic table.

“Thanks,” Red mumbled, tying it around himself, “How much longer do we have to keep doing this for?”

“If all goes well, then we can do the final ceremony in two weeks,” Katsuki said, putting his tools down, “If not, then it could take months.”

“Oh, okay.”

Katsuki narrowed his eyes at Red in suspicion, “Why do you sound relieved to hear that it could be months away?”

“I’m nervous,” Red admitted, playing with the tie of the robe, “I have no idea what’s going to happen, how it’s going to work, what’ll become of me, of  _ us. _ I guess, I dunno, I just think that two weeks feels so close, like it’s not enough time for me to come to terms with it.”

“That’s just how life is sometimes, Red,” Katsuki said soothingly, taking one of Red’s hands between his own, “We aren’t always given the time that we need to deal with things, but we make due. And trust me, the sooner this is over, the better.”

“But what’ll happen to me?” Red asked, “After I get my memories? What about Kirishima?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Katsuki assured, “If the ceremony goes well, everything will work out fine.”

“But I  _ am  _ worrying about it,” Red insisted. Then he looked down at their hands laced together. “What if I’m a different person when I get my memories back?”

“You will be.”

“Will...do you think...that you’ll….” Red couldn’t bring himself to ask. It was too daunting a question, too horrifying an answer.

“Red, look at me.” 

Red forced himself to raise his eyes to Katsuki’s and saw that they were filled with determination, like always. So fierce, and so confident. Red loved that.

“I love you,” Katsuki said firmly, “I’ve always loved you, memories or not. I know that you’ll be different when you get your memories back. I’m prepared to face any consequences that might bring. I’ll always love you Red, no matter who you are.”

“I...I love you too,” Red replied, finding himself to be choked up, “I’m just scared.”

“You don’t need to be,” Katsuki said, leaning forward so that his forehead was touching Red’s. Red closed his eyes, grateful for the touch.

“But I am,” he whispered, “I don’t know what’s going to happen, and I don’t like that.”

“I don’t either,” Katsuki admitted, “but just leave that to me. Trust me when I say this Red; nothing will matter to you after the ritual. All your fears will disappear, and so will everything else. You’ll finally have peace, Red.”

Red cracked open his one eye and noticed that Katsuki’s eyes were also closed, and he was smiling softly. He also noticed that Katsuki was crying. 


	24. The Key

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Naozumi returns with a gift

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOOO BOY WE GETTING CLOSE
> 
> Also!! Because this story is coming to a close, I would really appreciate it if yall checked out my tumblr and voted on what I should write next!!! My tumblr is ohshitmyship and it'll be the first post!! I wanna know what you guys want! Here's a link!!!   
> https://www.opinionstage.com/hollyhahiscock/what-should-i-write-next
> 
> Anyways, happy reading :)

Red was pleasantly surprised to see that among the roses, a couple of black ones had popped up. There were several red ones, but a few black buds had begun to bloom. There were still a handful that were yet to bloom, and Red was wondering whether he should try to do some research on rose symbolism. Perhaps he could put a bouquet together for Katsuki.

“Red!”

Red bristled when he heard the familiar voice call to him. He decided to follow the course of action he had last taken with Naozumi – ignoring him.

“Red please,” Naozumi begged from nearby. Red didn’t like how distressed he sounded, “You can’t ignore me today, you’re in danger!”

Red sighed and stood up, turning around to face the kitsune.

He was closer than he’d been before, leaning over the fence nearest Red. His eyes were wide and he looked pale, like he was genuinely frightened.

“What do you want?”

“To help you,” Naozumi insisted, “I’ve heard news that they’re going to sacrifice you in a couple of days.”

“You’re full of shit,” Red huffed, crossing his arms, “I’m not going to be sacrificed.”

“I’m going to lose you!” Naozumi cried, “Please Red, you have to get away. Run away with me!”

“I’m not about to do that,” Red scoffed, “I’ve got no reason to leave Katsuki. You’re a kitsune, I can’t trust you. You said so yourself.”

“I know,” Naozumi sighed, hanging his head, “Great spirits, Red,  _ I know. _ But you just gotta go with me.”

“I can’t,” Red declared, “I love Katsuki.”

Naozumi took a deep breath and lifted his head. Red was surprised to see that he was crying, “I know you think you do, and you believe he loves you too. But you’re just a stand-in, Red. He’s going to sacrifice you for Kirishima, and you’re going to disappear.”

“I don’t believe a word that’s coming out of your mouth right now,” Red declared, “Katsuki  _ does  _ love me, and I’m not going to die. I don’t know what’s going to happen after the ceremony, but I know it’s going to be okay.”

“You don’t know that,” Naozumi said, “Please, just come with me.”

He reached his hand out to Red, leaning far over the fence.

Red stepped back.

Naozumi sighed and pulled his hand back, wiping his tears away, “Okay. I know he’s got you wrapped around his finger. You won’t leave. But please, at least take this.”

Naozumi reached into his robe and pulled out a shiny white key. He held it out for Red.

“This is a key made from my master’s tooth,” Naozumi explained, “It’ll open any door with any enchantment, but only once.”

“What am I supposed to do with that?” Red asked, eyeing the key suspiciously.

“Use it on the garage,” Naozumi said, “There’s something in there you need to see.”

“Nothing will change my mind.”

“I somehow doubt that,” Naozumi said with a small smile, shaking his hand to gain Red’s attention to the key, “Just take it. You don’t have to use it. But if you do, and if you want to leave, I’ll be here. I won’t leave this forest, and if you run away, I’ll be here to protect you.”

“I won’t take it,” Red decided, putting his arms in his armpits, “I can’t trust you.”

Naozumi smiled sadly, “I’m not really asking for trust, am I? Have I ever?”

Red looked at the key in Naozumi’s hand then at his face. Slowly, he reached his hand out and took the key, finding it cold.

“I’m only taking this so that you’ll leave me alone,” Red declared, putting the key in his pocket.

“That’s fine,” Naozumi assured, apparently relieved, “That’s all I can really ask you to do, Red.”

“Go away,” Red grumbled, “or I’ll call Katsuki.”

“No need,” Naozumi replied, raising his hands in surrender and backing away from the fence. He shrank back down to a fox and seemed to grin up at him, “Remember, I’ll be waiting in the woods.”

As he scampered off, Red wondered whether he should have felt frightened or comforted. To his dismay, he found that he felt a bit of both.


	25. The Garage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red takes a peek

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Howdy y'all!!!! So here it is, the dreaded chapter! OOOOOOOO]
> 
> I had a lot of fun with this one, and I hope you do too!! Also, if you want some ambiance, I listened to Hozier's Sunlight when I was writing this lol. There's a weeee bit of body horror but it's not bad
> 
> Anyways, happy reading!

“Red!”

Red turned at the sound of his name and was tackled by Katsuki in a bear hug, the other man laughing loudly.

“Katsuki, I didn’t even hear you come in,” Red replied with a smile, Katsuki’s joy was too contagious.

“They did it!” He cried, “They got the vote! The police can use magic!”

Red grinned, “That’s great!!!”

“It sure fucking is!” Katsuki stepped back, now holding Red’s hands, “They’re hot on Stain’s trail and they’ll have him by the end of the week. This is it, Red. In a few days, this will all be over!”

* * *

For the next few days, Red didn’t know what to do.

He was excited because he was finally getting his memories back. No more being trapped in the cottage, not knowing who he was, and most importantly – no more secrets.

But he was scared, too. He still couldn’t shake the thought that he was a sacrifice for Kirishima. Every time he brought it up, Katsuki just shrugged it off. He was too excited to take things seriously and the only time when he wasn’t completely absentminded was when he was performing rituals on Red.

“This is it,” he’d say with a wild grin, “we’re almost there, Red.”

He had also become incredibly affectionate, which Red was grateful for. He was showered in compliments and Katsuki kissed him at every chance he had. It was nice, but he couldn’t ignore the picture in his mind of a pig being fattened up for the slaughter.

* * *

A few days later, Katsuki had went into town. He had been home since the vote on magic, claiming that he didn’t want to take any chances. But now he needed information, so he kissed Red goodbye and left for the day.

Once he had gone, Red went to their bedroom, opened his drawer, and took out the key. It was still cold, and it felt heavy in his hand. 

As soon as he had received it, Red had put it in the drawer and refused to look at it. But he thought about it. A lot. 

His mixed emotions were just made more complicated by the key, and what it could mean. The garage had been off-limits since the beginning, even to Camie. He wondered what could possibly be in there that would make him sure to run. Naozumi had seemed confident in the fact that Red would leave if he saw the garage.

Red sighed and put the key in his pocket, turning to the sketchbook, which was open to the most recent page. The sketch was now almost complete, and clearly depicted a raven with a rose clutched in its claws. It was hard to imagine the drawing as anything else now.

He tried doing more of the piece, but nothing would come. He just found himself tracing over lines he had already done, and his mind was on the key in his pocket.

Finally he snapped the sketchbook closed, getting up from the bed. He made his way outside, cursing his curiosity. 

Red came to stand outside of the garage, clutching the key in his hand, staring at the doorknob, torn.

Half of him screamed at him not to go inside, to not trust a kitsune, to listen to Katsuki, they had come so far! He was safe with Katsuki, and he was happy.

_ But for how long? _ the other half of him whispered in his ear, somehow just as loud as the screaming. Katsuki kept him secure, but he was ignorant, in the dark, trapped in the cage of this house with small glimpses of the outside. He trusted Katsuki, but was that safe? That had seemed to be his only option from the beginning, but was it right? How did he know that he wasn’t a pig to the slaughter, just waiting for the right time to be killed?

Then there was the question of Naozumi. His words rang through his head amongst his infighting;  _ I’m not really asking for trust, am I? Have I ever? _

“It’s fine,” he assured himself, but he didn’t like how weak his voice sounded, “We’ve come this far, I’m sure this won’t hurt.”

Red took a deep breath and slid the key into the keyhole, turning it with shaking hands.

Slowly, carefully, he opened the door, light falling on shapes otherwise too dark to make out. He felt along the wall for a lightswitch and turned it on.

He wasn’t sure what he had been expecting, but it wasn’t  _ this _ .

It looked kind of like a workshop, but a very odd one. Half of it – the half that was closer to the garage door – was a mechanic’s, with the motorcycle in the middle, tools on the walls, oil in the corner. Nothing out of the ordinary.

But the rest of it looked like something one would find at a psychic’s house. There were small round tables filled with crystals, velvety pouches, wands, and other odd things. On one table where there sat a chair, there was a large book. Curious, Red went over and found that it was a photo album.

He found that the rest of the items were covered in dust, or had at the very least not been touched in a while. The book and chair were the only things that seemed to have been touched recently. The cover was filled with orange and red roses and the title card in the centre read in fancy font;

 

_ Bakugou Katsuki & Kirishima Eijirou _

 

Even more curious than ever, Red sat down in the comfy chair and opened up the book, gasping aloud as he did so.

As the title suggested, Katsuki was in most of the photos, alongside….Red.

Well, it  _ looked _ like Red, but not. The man in the pictures, presumably Kirishima, looked exactly like him – same body shape, same sharpened teeth, same red hair, same face, even the same scar above the eye. But there were stark differences too; Kirishima’s skin was filled with tattoos, bright and colourful and enchanting. Red actually recognized some of them from the sketchbook, and he noticed that the tattoos seemed to change place, never staying the same for two pictures. Another difference was the hair – Kirishima’s was spiked up away from his face in most of the photos. In some, his long hair was tied back in a bun, the same style that Red wore when he worked.

One of the first pictures was a selfie, seemingly taken with a polaroid. It depicted Katsuki with his shoulder tattoo, which looked very fresh. Kirishima stood next to him with his hand on his shoulder, giving a thumbs up and grinning wildly. Katsuki looked somewhat indifferent, but Red found that they were both blushing. Underneath the picture was a date, meaning the picture had been taken about a year and a half ago.

Another picture from around the same time had the two men at the beach in swimsuits, hair wet and messy. Kirishima’s face was only half in the picture, grinning, as he took a selfie with Katsuki scowling and flipping him off. He remembered that day, how uncharacteristically warm the water had been.

Wait...how could he remember? He wasn’t there.

Red shook his head and turned the page. 

As he flipped through the photos of the two, Red felt a growing sense of dread in the pit of his stomach. This wasn’t right… it couldn’t be…

When he came across a photo of multiple people, he suddenly heard voices in his mind. He recognized Shouto’s and Izuku’s, but there were others, voices who  _ sounded  _ familiar yet their names laid just beyond his grasp. 

These pictures were more recent, and he was quite upset that he couldn’t remember his own friends in the photos.

One photo had him with his arms slung around his friends, drunk and laughing. He could hear the girl with pink hair laughing, the boy with black hair warning them to be careful. The girl with short, purple hair couldn’t keep her cool as the blond man tripped over himself in his drunken stupor. Katsuki, being the only sober one at the time, had taken the picture.

No...that wasn’t a memory. It couldn’t be. He wasn’t there, Kirishima was.

He shook his head and turned the page, finding himself staring at an engagement photo.

Katsuki knelt on one knee, grinning proudly as Kirishima stared at him in awe. They were at the cliffs.

_ Engaged.  _ Red felt like he was drowning, and the sudden roar of the ocean waves in his mind didn’t help that sensation. He slammed the book shut and stood up so quickly that he knocked the chair over. He stumbled back and steadied himself on a table. As he did, he felt his hand touch something cold. He looked down and saw a knife. Carefully, he picked it up and examined it. The blade was a pure, deep black, like it sucked the light away. It was sleek and pointed, as if it were a tear in space. The handle seemed to be made out of some kind of bone, smooth and with many runes carved into it.

As Red held it, he began to get a harsh headache. He hissed as his mind seemed to split, clutching the knife and leaning on the table. He closed his eyes, hoping to ease the pain behind them.

No sooner had he done so when he saw Stain attacking him, like in his nightmares. He felt the stabs in his abdomen, could feel them destroying important things inside. The memory physically  _ hurt _ .

He stumbled back, clutching his side and dropping the knife, gasping. It was a dream. Why did it hurt? Why did it  _ hurt _ ? And why was he suddenly so cold?

He heard Katsuki’s voice in his mind, screaming his name.

_ Eijirou! Eijirou, goddammit, no! Eijirou! _

Wait...his name was Red, not Eijirou…?

Another stab in his mind sent him hurtling back, knocking into something hard.

He turned around and saw a large object covered with a red cloth. His headache pounded away, but it was nothing compared to the beating of his heart.

Almost on its own, his hand reached out and grabbed the sheet covering the thing, yanking it away.

He wished he hadn’t.

A massive cylindrical tube filled with blood and a body. His body. Kirishima’s body.

It was the body in the pictures, naked, terribly pale, bald, tattoos intact. Except this time, the tattoos weren’t moving. They were all bathed in red, their colours drowned out by the blood.

But as Red looked on, head pounding, heart racing, stomach queasy, he realized something awful.

It wasn’t a body.

It was  _ skin _ .

It was loose, limp. It looked like a body floating, but Red noticed five strings keeping it in place; one on each wrist, ankle, and the neck. 

Then his head felt like someone had run a rusty railroad spike through it as a memory ripped through him.

_ “Eijirou.” Katsuki’s face flooded his vision, the moon behind him, framed by the buildings making the alleyway. No stars. _

_ “Eijirou, I’ll bring you back, no matter what it takes.” _

_ It hurt. He felt so cold. So tired. Darkness all around him. _

_ He saw Katsuki raise a knife. The black one from the table. There were tears in his eyes. He brought the knife down, right into Eijirou’s heart. A moment of sharp pain, then nothing. _

Feeling his stomach heave, Red stumbled back, running for the door to the open. He gasped for air, collapsing in the dirt, landing on his hands and knees, desperately trying not to throw up.

It hurt, it hurt,  _ it hurt _ ! His head, his limbs, his stomach, his heart. He clutched at his chest, feeling hot and cold all at the same time.

Tires. Tires on gravel.

Red froze, hearing the familiar sound. No doubt it was Katsuki.

Katsuki.

So many things were confusing but one thing was certain: Katsuki had killed him. Katsuki was going to kill him again and replace him with Kirishima. Equivalent exchange.

Panic flooded him as he heard the car stop. Knowing he had only seconds, Red bolted. He ran straight for the gate in the garden, running through the rose garden in his haste, not even noticing the thorns tearing at his ankles yet drawing no blood. He just ran.

He hopped over the fence easily, sprinting into the forest. He followed the path, just running, trying to get away. He had to get help, he had to get away!

As he was running, a familiar figure came up, a three-tailed fox. It grinned at Red and then darted away.

Red didn’t hesitate to follow his friend into the forest, leaving the little cottage and the garage of horrors behind. He didn’t care where he went, so long as it wasn’t there.


	26. Katsuki

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We see what Katsuki sees

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOOOO boy   
> So the responses from last chapter were AMAZING and I'm so glad that you guys loved it / were so freaked out lol. I'm living for this.  
> Also, the mystery ends in this chapter. I think? Mostly, yeah. Katsuki explains everything so warning – it's kinda exposition heavy. but you get all the answers and some familiar faces!!!!!  
> I'm also kinda sad bc this is ending soon like wow, only 4 chapters after this one. Wild.  
> Anyways!!!! So here's a poll where you can vote for what I should write next!!! https://www.opinionstage.com/hollyhahiscock/what-should-i-write-next
> 
> Happy reading! :)

Katsuki could barely contain himself as he gripped the wheel, taking turns a lot faster than he really should’ve. He also could not keep the stupid grin off of his face.

He hadn’t been this excited since they announced that police were able to use magic on duty. Hell, this was better than that.

When he finally went through the gate and parked the car, he kicked the door open and ran out, “Red!” He yelled, “Red you’re not gonna believe this!”

He heard no reply, so he guessed that Red would be inside. He opened the front door and called out, “Red! I’ve got great news!”  
Again, no reply. He wondered if Red was listening to music, but he heard none.

The grin quickly slid off his face.

“Red!” He yelled again, this time more frantic. He ran into the bedroom only to find it empty, the sketchbook left on the bed. The bathroom was empty too.

“No, no no no no,” he mumbled to himself, his panic building as he tore through the empty house.

When he found no trace of Red, he had a horrible thought. Begging it not to be true, he ran out to the garage.

The door was open.

“ _ Shit! _ ” Katsuki hissed, running for the garage. He threw the door open wide and his stomach clenched up.

The sheet had been ripped off Kirishima’s container, thrown on the floor. His knife was on the floor. The book was open.

“Red?” Katsuki called out tentatively, “Red if you’re there, please, listen. I won’t hurt you, I’ll explain what I can. I know it looks bad – Jesus, it  _ is _ bad.”

Katsuki paused to listen, but he heard nothing. Cursing, he stormed out.

That’s when he noticed the roses.

They were broken and squished. Obviously trampled.

He turned back to shut the door and found a key in the knob. He frowned. He only had one key, and he kept it on his person.

He bent down and inspected the key. He dared not touch it, merely looked at it. It was white, kind of shiny. But it didn’t seem to be perfectly smooth. His eyes widened and he stood up, stepping back quickly.

“Kitsune’s tooth,” he realized. He left it in the keyhole, knowing that if anyone but a kitsune touched it, it would turn to dust.

He went to the gate and peered into the woods. Nothing. He sighed.

Then he went to his circle and peered into it. He waved his hand and spoke the command word, the flames flickering. They then swirled up together to make a screen of sorts, playing out the past few minutes in silent black and white.

He waved his hand until he got to the part where he wanted – Red at the garage. He saw him wait at the door, obviously thinking hard. Then he saw him raise his arm and unlock the door, going inside. He wasn’t there for too long before he came running out, falling onto his hands and knees. He saw Red look behind him then scramble to his feet, racing out of the garden and hopping the fence into the woods. Katsuki then saw himself come only a few moments later.

Infuriated, Katsuki swept his hand across, making the images disappear. 

“Fuck!” He yelled to himself, feeling about a thousand emotions roiling through him, “Fuck fuck  _ fuck _ !”

He took a breath, “Okay, shit, Katsuki. Keep it together.” 

He pulled out his phone and called Camie.

“Yello.”

“Red’s gone,” Katsuki said, his voice cracking a bit, “He’s run off with the kitsune. Get everyone here, we do this ceremony  _ tonight _ .”

While he waited for his friends to arrive, Katsuki sat in one of the chairs in the garage, staring at what was left of Kirishima. He began to think about how it had all gone wrong….

 

_ He’d been on his way home, walking from Camie’s to the store where he had parked his car. Kirishima had called and told him that he’d be staying overnight at his studio in town. _

_ As he was walking through the heart of town, he heard a scream. _

_ Katsuki immediately ran to the source of the noise, in some back alley. He turned the corner quickly, standing in the mouth of the alley. _

_ Sitting on the fence, about to jump, was a man in black with a red bandana, two swords at his back. Katsuki recognized him immediately and felt his heart drop. _

_ Thankfully, Stain disappeared into the shadows. Katsuki ran towards where he had been, but there was no point in following. He stopped by the body, kneeling down. It was too dark, his eyes hadn’t adjusted yet. _

_ “Hey, it’s going to be okay.” _

_ The person on the ground lifted their head ever so slightly, “Katsuki?” _

_ His heart dropped into his feet. _

_ “Eijirou?” _

_ Gently, he turned his fiancé over. He shoved his fist in his mouth to keep from screaming.  _

_ He had been stabbed three times, each in the lower abdomen. Katsuki was too distraught to focus properly, but he could feel the life draining from Eijirou. The curse surrounding the wounds. The tattoos on his body were running amok on his skin, the life draining from them as well. _

_ “Katsuki,” Kirishima reached out his shaking hand. Katsuki grabbed it and held it tight, “I’m sorry.” _

_ “No, no,” Katsuki cried, tears falling from his eyes, “This can’t be happening, it can’t. Eijirou, please.” _

_ “It hurts,” Kirishima rasped, “Knife.” _

_ “I know, you were stabbed, I know Eijirou, I know I know.” _

_ “Your knife.” _

_ Katsuki froze.  _

His _ knife. _

_ Slowly, he reached to his back, underneath his shirt. He pulled out his obsidian knife gifted to him by Akiko, blessed for his work. _

_ “Please,” Kirishima begged. _

_ Katsuki stared at the knife, “I’m not letting you go. I can fix this.” He gripped the knife tightly and stared his dying fiancé in the eye, “Everything’s going to be alright, Eijirou. I promise.” _

_ He raised the knife. _

_ Kirishima locked eyes with Katsuki. _

_ “I’m sorry Eijirou, I’m so sorry,” He apologized, tears in his eyes.  _

_ He forced his eyes to stay on Kirishima’s as he drove the knife right through his heart, killing him instantly.  The grip on his free hand tightened, then loosened and the tattooed hand fell away.  _

_ Katsuki took his knife out, cleaned it, called the police. Izuku was the first on the scene, shocked by the image of Katsuki holding Kirishima’s head in his lap, weeping. _

 

_ A day after the funeral. Katsuki felt bad for Kirishima’s family, but they couldn’t use the real body. If all went well, the pig’s ashes would never come in contact with the family tomb. _

_ Kirishima’s body was laid out on the obsidian altar deep in the shrine, where only he and Akiko were allowed. _

_ “This is going to be difficult,” Akiko warned as she waved incense around the body, “This is beyond you, and the spell that Stain put on him is complicated.” _

_ “I don’t care,” Katsuki snapped, carefully drawing sigils on Kirishima’s body, “I would burn the world for him.” _

_ “Hmph, well let us hope that it does not come to that.” _

_ The procedure had taken an entire 6 hours. It had been one of the most painstaking and disgusting Katsuki had done, but he didn’t regret a moment of it. Because every moment brought him closer to seeing the love of his life once again. _

_ At the end, the body had been drained of blood and the majority of the skin had been removed.  The blood was in a large container beside the altar where the skin floated in the blood. _

_ “He’s going to kill me about the tattoos,” Katsuki said with a small smile, “He’s spent thousands of dollars on them.” _

_ “I am sure that he will get over it,” Akiko assured. _

_ “Yeah, and he can make them all again anyways. Should we begin?” Katsuki raised his hands above the body, ready to begin the final stage. _

_ “Wait!” Akiko cried, rushing over and grabbing Katsuki’s hands to stop him, “Something is wrong.” _

_ Katsuki frowned and lowered his arms, his master letting go, “Wrong? We performed it perfectly!” _

_ “His soul….” Akiko said, gliding her hand above Kirishima’s body, “It’s missing.” _

_ “Are you telling me we lost his  _ soul _?” Katsuki cried. _

_ “No….it has merely been displaced,” Akiko explained, her gaze moving to the skin and the blood, her eyes widening, “His tattoos.” _

_ “They’re magic,” Katsuki realized, “They each hold a part of his soul...that’s how they can come to life.” _

_ “We may yet be able to mend this,” Akiko said, walking over to the tank, “We should be able to extract the essence of his soul from the tattoos. It won’t be easy.” _

_ “I don’t care,” Katsuki said, rolling up his sleeves and putting his apron back on, “I’ll do whatever it takes.” _

 

“Katsuki?”

He was snapped back to reality by the call of his name. He turned his head to see Camie standing in the doorway.

“How’re you holding up?”

Katsuki wiped his eyes, “Fine, all things considered. What’s up?”

“Everyone’s here,” Camie said, “We’re waiting for you.”

“Right,” he said, standing up. He went out and closed the door behind him, the key now gone, “Have you said anything?”

“No,” she replied as they walked to the house, “I wasn’t sure what to say.”

“Good.”

When they came up to the house, they saw four people gathered on the porch, talking in hushed tones. Katsuki recognized Izuku, Shouto, Tsuyu, and Ochako. They all turned when they saw him approach.

“Kacchan–”

“Get inside,” he barked, ”I’ll explain everything.”

Ochako opened her mouth, but Izuku put his hand on her shoulder and shook her head. Warily, they all went inside.

Katsuki had to admit that he was extremely grateful for the people that were gathered in his house. Usually, he would be wildly annoyed to see such a large amount of people in his house (and he would’ve kicked Mina’s ass for sitting on his counter), but he was glad for the help.

As soon as he shut the door behind him, all conversation dropped. He took a breath as we moved to stand in front of the tv, the four who had been on the porch finding their spots, Camie by his side.

“I guess I should say thanks for coming,” he began, hands shoved in his pockets, “I’m sure most of you have no fucking clue what’s going on.”

There was a small murmur of agreement.

He took another breath, “Kirishima is alive.”

There was an explosion of noise. Immediately, he was bombarded with questions, too many to answer any. Scowling, he reached into his pocket and tossed up a little cherry bomb, the sudden noise silencing everyone.

“Shaddup!” He yelled, “Let me explain, would you? Jesus.” He waited a moment before continuing, “As you all know, Kirishima was killed by Stain. It’s basically been confirmed that he’s working with Sankono.”

“The Kitsune King?” Mina cried from the back.

Katsuki glared at her, “Yes, the Kitsune King. He attacked Kirishima for two reasons: to instigate a war with Master Akiko and to force me into making a Final Deal.”

“You didn’t…” Kaminari said with wide eyes.

“Of fucking course I didn’t, dipshit.”

“Um, excuse me?” Ochako raised her hand, “Non-magic here. What the hell is the Final Deal?”

“It’s a way to bring back the dead,” Katsuki explained, “to live out the rest of their lives. It doesn’t take a sacrifice from the deceased or require any guidelines like my usual work. Instead, it takes a heavy toll on the one who brought them back. It either kills the spellcaster, or steals their magic and a good chunk of their life force.”

“But why use it when you can already bring back the dead?” Tsuyu croaked.

“Because Stain tried to kill Kirishima in a way that would stop me from doing that,” Katsuki said through gritted teeth, “I can only bring someone back if their time has been stolen from them – dying suddenly or dying young. I can’t bring back someone whose time is up, it just doesn’t work like that.”

“But Kirishima died suddenly,” Sero piped up from beside Mina, “Right?”

“Not really,” Katsuki said, clenching his fists at his sides, “Stain cursed his knives when he attacked Kirishima. He made it so that every drop of blood that Kirishima spilled was time taken from his lifespan. If he had gotten his way, Kirishima would’ve bled out, and there’d be nothing I could do.”

“But you said he’s alive,” Mina said hopefully, “So the spell didn’t work, right?”

“It did,” Katsuki said coldly, “Too fucking well. The only way to stop it is to immediately kill the victim – it reverses the effect if they’re killed before they’re bled dry.”

There was silence again. Finally, Ochako spoke.

“You killed Kirishima.”

“It was the only way he could bring him back,” Camie interjected. 

Katsuki usually would’ve been furious, but he was close to tears and thus grateful for the intervention.

“After Kirishima was declared dead,” she continued, “we took the body and as much blood as we could to Akiko’s shrine. She and Katsuki worked together to bring him back regularly but...there was a problem.”

“When we revive someone,” Katsuki began again, “We take most of the skin. Gross as fuck, but it cleanses the body of death. We did that with Kirishima, but his tattoos complicated things. They held his entire soul – and a body without a soul is worthless. We extracted as much as we could from the tattoos, but it wasn’t nearly as much as we wanted. The body was starting to get too old for us to totally fix it, so we came up with a partial solution.

“We buried what we had gathered of Kirishima to rebirth him, like we usually do. But we kept the rest on hand. We had to bring part of Kirishima back to life and we’d just have to fix the rest later.”

“That’s where Red comes in,” Camie broke in, “Most of you haven’t met him, but he was kinda like Beta version Kirishima. Most of his personality, same looks, no memories.”

“The memories thing totally screwed us over,” Katsuki complained, “Because he had no memories, that part of the soul couldn’t be put back into his body, so he couldn’t remember anything or a part of his soul that is incompatible would force itself back.”

“So Katsuki kept him here,” Camie said, “Only myself, both our masters, Izuku, All Might, and Shouto knew. While he kept Red safe, he also worked with us to find a way to bind the old stuff with the new.”

“A few weeks ago, we found a solution,” Katsuki said, “but we couldn’t do anything because Stain and who the fuck knows what else was still out there. They thought that Kirishima was dead, and we weren’t about to tell them the truth. As soon as Stain was taken in, it would be safe for us to do the final ceremony.”

“So is that what we’re here for?” Sero asked, “To help? To welcome Kirishima back?”

“No,” Katsuki growled, “He’s gone. A kitsune that’s loyal to its king has been hanging around. It gave Red a key to the garage and he went in. He saw what was still left of Kirishima and bolted with the kitsune. We need to get him back.”

“How?” Kaminari asked then, “If this is all orchestrated by the Kitsune King, how do we have any chance of defeating him? I want Kirishima back as much as anyone, but if he’s with the King, then how is there any hope?”

“We’ve gotta try!” Katsuki yelled, “I’m not saying we can take down the King, all we gotta do is rescue Red. We do that, and we get Kirishima back.”

Silence again. Kaminari looked a tad sheepish, while everyone seemed unsure.

Finally, Izuku stood up.

“I’ll help. The ocean is on your side.”

After a moment, Shouto stood up too. He simply nodded.

Both Ochako and Iida shot up from their spots beside their friend.

“I’m in!” Ochako said cheerfully, “I don’t know shit about magic, but I’ve got taiho-justu and my gun!”  
“And me,” Tsuyu added quietly.

“We would be honoured to help get our dear friend back!” Iida yelled enthusiastically, “And I would be more than glad to help you in any way I am able!”

After that, everyone in the room took turns declaring their desire for the mission. Every single person gathered in his house promised to help Katsuki get the love of his life back to him.

“That’s what I’m talking about!” Katsuki grinned, his eyes filled with tears. He raised his fist in the air as he cried, “Let’s kick a king’s ass!”


	27. In The Woods Somewhere

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red is running, runnning, running.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey y'all!!! I'm so sorry this has taken so long. I've picked up a second job to pay for school and i've got a bunch of fanzines and bangs that I'm a aprt of so i havent been working on this as much as id like to. but a new chapter is here, and hopefully it was worth the wait lol. Also, my wonderful Andersunny (tumblr) has made beautiful art for chapters 25 and 26 and y'all should totally check them out. If y'all have fanart or something similar for lrpd, tag me! I'm on tumblr and also twitter, so feel free to spam me, i love attention adhjsdbfsjid
> 
> anyways, happy reading!

“Naozumi! Naozumi, where are you?”

Red tried to catch his breath as he stopped to lean on a tree. He looked all around him, but the kitsune was nowhere to be found.

“Maybe this was a bad idea,” he mumbled to himself, turning so he rested his back on the tree, sliding down to sit underneath it. His head still pounded furiously, his right arm had begun to burn, and images of a knife and Katsuki’s face flooded his vision. He had no idea what to think, and was starting to believe that his knee-jerk reaction may not have been the best.

“I should go back,” he said to himself, “I can talk this out. He killed me, but he brought me back. There’s gotta be a good reason for all this.”

“There isn’t.”

Red turned his head to see Naozumi step out from a bush, transforming into a human as he did so.

“You saw what was in that shed,” he said.

Red narrowed his eyes, “You knew.”

Naozumi shrugged, “I don’t. I just knew that whatever it was, it was dangerous, and bad. What did you see?”

Red opened his mouth, but felt his stomach heave, and so he shut it. He thrust the image from his mind, unwilling to think about it anymore.

“That bad, huh?”

Red nodded.

“Well then, that’s all the proof you need to know that it’s not safe with him.” Naozumi stepped forward and extended a hand, “Come with me, I can take you to a place where he can’t get to you.”

Red hesitated, looking at the clawed hand. He debated it, different voices arguing inside of him.  _ It’s not safe. Nowhere is safe. Don’t trust him. Don’t trust Katsuki. Run away. Go with him. Go back. _

Then the image of the knife and the blood came back. Red shook his head and took Naozumi’s hand.

The kitsune grinned as he effortlessly pulled him up, “C’mon, we’re not too far now.” Then his eyes widened, “Oh, hey. What’s that on your arm?”

Red looked down at where he had felt the burning and was surprised at what he saw. It looked like a very faded, very blurry tattoo of a red hummingbird. It seemed familiar, so  _ familiar,  _ but he didn’t know why.

“I...I dunno.”

“It might be a side effect of the memories coming back,” Naozumi said, “I think it might be starting. Which is good, it just means we should get going.”

Naozumi began to lead him through the forest, but at a slower pace this time. 

They walked mostly in silence, Red trying to calm his thoughts.

He still wasn’t sure what to make of what he had seen. He had memories come back, but he was unsure whether they were his or not. He remembered dying, being stabbed, Katsuki holding the knife.

Okay. So that at least was clear.

Why had Katsuki stabbed him? Called him Eijirou? His leading theory was that he was still a sacrifice to bring Kirishima back, and maybe Katsuki had been thinking of him when he had stabbed Red.

But he didn’t need to start a relationship with Red if he was just going to kill him in the end. It’d be like naming a chicken you were going to eat – nonsensical and cruel.

Then there was the whole thing about Eijirou’s appearance – he looked exactly like Red, but with tattoos. He might have guessed that they were twins, but scars weren’t genetic, and Eijirou had Red’s scar over his right eye. 

“Red, I can  _ hear  _ you thinking.”

“I just don’t get it,” Red said, “So much of it doesn’t add up. Maybe we should talk to Kats–”

“No!” Naozumi hissed, snarling at Red and stopping in his tracks, “We’re not going back there!”

“Maybe we should!” Red argued, “We can figure this out together.”

“You don’t get it! Katsuki is the enemy here, you saw what was in the garage. What kind of person has a tank filled with blood and skin? Not a good one, Red.”

Red took a step back, suddenly feeling cold and overheated at the same time, the mark burning on his arm even more, “You said you didn’t know what was in the garage.” 

Naozumi looked shocked, but only for a moment, because he was back to acting nonchalant, “I lied, Red. I didn’t want to freak you out.”

“You could’ve told me.”

“You wouldn’t have believed me.”

“No,” Red realized, taking another step back, “You  _ wanted  _ me to see that.”

“Seeing is believing, Red.”

“That’s not it,” Red continued slowly walking back, “You knew that it would bring back memories, that it would make me leave.”

“Red –”

“Don’t!” Red yelled, “I don’t want you to come near me.”

“Red, you just gotta listen to me,” Naozumi tried, “You have to trust me.”

_ Kitsunes can’t be trusted. _

Red turned and ran.

He didn’t get far, though, because Naozumi dashed in front of him as a fox, causing him to fall.

“I’m taking you to see my King,” he growled from beside his head, “whether you like it or not.”

“Screw off!” Red spat, scrambling to his feet and running away, hopefully back where they had come.

“You’ve been listening to me for the past four months,” Naozumi teased, “Why stop now?”

“You never asked me to trust you,” Red spat back, tripping over roots and trying not to fall again. 

“Yeah, I think I could’ve kept this going for a bit longer if I hadn’t played that card,” Naozumi admitted with a laugh.

“Leave!” Red cried, “Please, I just want to go home!”

“Can’t let you do that, sorry,” Naozumi laughed, “We’ve got big plans for you and Katsuki.”

“Why?!”

“Something about the masters having bad blood?” Naozumi mused, “To be quite honest I’m not sure, but I do love chaos, so I’m happy to help my King.”

Red realized that begging wouldn’t do any good and would probably just egg Naozumi on. He swallowed a sob and continued running, so tired, so sore, so confused. He wanted to sit down and cry and never wake up again.

But he couldn’t do that.

He didn’t know much, but he knew he had to get back to Katsuki. He didn’t know what the shed meant, but the feeling of seeing the mark on his arm...it felt like what he had with Katsuki. Naozumi never had that.

Oh, he’d been an idiot to listen to the kitsune.

As he ran, he could hear cackling surrounding him, coming from every direction. He wondered if there was another person, but it all sounded like Naozumi.

Every so often, Naozumi would pop out of the bushes, laughing maniacally, nipping at his heels. Red ran out of the way, trying to keep his path straight. He only hoped he was headed back home.

And then he came to the base of the mountain.

He could see the slope going up above him and he knew he was in the completely wrong direction. He turned to go back, but he saw Naozumi standing in the bushes behind him. He swore and started the climb.

Red could still hear Naozumi taunting him from behind and prayed for a hiding spot. As if to answer him, he saw a crack in the rock, just barely wide enough for him to get through. 

He glanced behind him but didn’t see the kitsune, then dashed for it. It was tight, and the jagged opening scraped his skin, but he could do it. He got through.

As he pushed through the final bit, he stumbled into a cavern. He guessed that he was in the volcano now, as it was hot and the rock that made the structure was dark. The entire cavern had an eerie red glow to it.

It was made even eerier when a low voice rumbled throughout the cavern, “Kirishima. So glad you could make it.”

Quickly deciding that Naozumi was better than whatever the hell was in there, Red turned back to go through the crack. 

He began to cry when he saw that it was gone.

“No,” he sobbed, tears falling from his eyes as he banged on the wall, “No, no no no nononono, NO!”

“An illusion,” the voice said, “Quite good, wasn’t it?”

“Let me out!” Red yelled.

“I’m afraid that would defeat the whole purpose, my dear.”

The air in front of him became wavy, like heat off a car. Then the heat took form as a handsome man in rich and colourful robes, nine tails sprouting from the bottom. He was pale as the moon, with silver hair and piercing blue eyes.

“Hello,” he crooned, “it’s so nice to formally meet you, Kirishima. I am King Sankono.”

Before Red could do anything, the mark on his arm burned again. Sankono cocked his head to the side and reached out a clawed hand. 

Red yanked his arm away, but Sankono caught it, bringing it closer effortlessly. Red struggled, but Sankono didn’t seem to notice.

“What a beautiful piece of art,” he mused as he traced over the mark, “I am a big fan of your work, really. Such unique magic. A shame it’s only used as a parlour trick.”

He let go of Red’s arm and he yanked it back, looking at the mark. It was now a fully finished tattoo of the red hummingdragon.

“Red Jr,” he whispered. As he did, the tattoo peeled off of his skin and flitted around his head before landing in his hair, staring down the Kitsune King. He was suddenly flooded with the memory of this tattoo – practicing it for hours, learning the magic of life drawings, Red Jr being his first success, the agonizing detail he put into it.

“How cute,” Sankono cooed, “Let’s see what else we can bring back, yes?”

As he said that, different parts of Red began to burn. He looked and saw bits and pieces of tattoos returning to his skin. Kirishima’s tattoos. His tattoos.

He heard Red Jr growl from his perch.

Red took a breath and clenched his fists, standing up straight and staring Sankono in the eye.

“You will not touch me.”

Sankono stopped and smiled, “What’s this? Courage? Oh, how admirable, really. But it makes it all a little annoying, to be quite honest.”

Red was scared, so scared. He was alone, with an ancient kitsune, in a volcano. What was he supposed to do?

Then he felt a burning on his left calf, and a vague memory came back.

_ “It’s not a bad idea to always keep a knife on you. _ ”

He had taken Katsuki’s words quite literally.

He focused on the memory and though it burned, he fought through it. He was used to pain. He had art sewn into his skin. 

Red then reached down and pulled a long, thin knife from his leg. He held it in front of him and gripped it tight.

“Let me go,” he demanded again, “Before this gets ugly.”

“I would really rather this not get ugly,” Sankono said with a sigh, “You’re going to die, why not make it beautiful?”

“I died once before,” Red quipped back, adjusting his grip, “Don’t plan on repeating the experience anytime soon.”

Deciding it was now or never, Red rushed forward, his knife at the ready. He aimed for Sankono’s heart, but he was swept to the side easily.

“I’m losing my patience,” Sankono snarled, his features becoming more fox-like, “Let me bring the tattoos back, and your death will be painless.”

“I’m not dying again!” Red yelled, “Katsuki had to kill me once before, and goddammit I am going to make sure it wasn’t for shit!”

Red Jr roared in affirmation, and Red could feel a small blast of heat as he breathed a tiny plume of fire.

“Do you really think you can defeat me?” Sankono demanded with a grin, “I’m a  _ god _ , while you are a mere mortal. Your power is impressive I’ll admit, but you don’t have it. Right now, you have a shattered mind, a broken body, a flimsy dagger, a hummingbird that breathes fire, and not a chance in the world!”   


Suddenly, an explosion blasted through the right side of the cavern. The entire structure shook as part of the wall caved in on itself, sunlight from the late afternoon streaming in. Red turned and shielded his eyes to see a figure standing in the opening. He felt his heart soar when he heard a familiar voice speak.

“That’s where you’re wrong, asshole. He’s got  _ friends. _ ”


	28. Bindfolded

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Cavalry!!!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HNNGGG I USED LIKE 5 SIMILES IN THIS CHAPTER AND IDK WHAT I'M DOING
> 
> happy reading :)

As Red’s eyes adjusted to the light, he grinned.

There, in the opening of the volcano, was Katsuki. If Red wasn’t so happy to see him, he would've been terrified.

Katsuki’s hands were smoking like a used gun, and his face was distorted into a wicked grin that could only be described as ‘enraged’.

“ _ You,” _ Sankono snarled, “Just the person I wanted to see least right now. However, you also happen to be one of the people I would like to kill most. So perhaps I can make light of a bad situation.”

“Gonna be hard to do that,” Katsuki replied, “Cuz I didn’t come alone.”

After he finished speaking, a vial of bright pink liquid sailed over his head. It crashed at Sankono’s feet and shattered, the liquid spraying over the Fox King. He hissed as his robes smoked and disintegrated, revealing clawed feet. His face transformed from a beautiful man into a silver fox, his nose elongating into a snarling snout revealing sharp teeth.

“It’s time to usurp the King!” Katsuki cried, raising his arm, obsidian knife in hand. There came a loud cry from outside as more shapes appeared behind Katsuki, rushing into the chamber.

They were people. Friends.  _ His friends.  _

“Hey, Ei!” A girl with wild pink hair called, vials of pink liquid in her hand.

“He doesn’t have his memory back!” Another girl cried, with short purple hair and long earlobes. They and the rest of the cavalry ran at the kitsune, successfully distracting him from Red.

“I know them,” he mumbled to himself.

“Red!”

He turned to see Katsuki running towards him, flanked by Camie, Izuku, and Shouto. They backed him against the wall, everyone but Katsuki facing outward. 

Excitedly, Red Jr flew up to Katuki and nuzzled his face. He smiled a bit but it quickly faded.

“Your tattoos…” he said, looking at Red with wide eyes. Red looked down and saw images appearing on his body, burning his skin. He felt recognition, but he couldn’t quite make them out. 

“We need to do this, and fast,” Katsuki said, turning to the three, “Whatever happens, do  _ not  _ let Sankono near us.”

“Oh don’t you worry your pretty head about that,” Camie said with a grin. Red saw her heft a wicked curved blade, saw Shouto’s right hand catch fire while his left became shrouded in frost, and saw Midoriya’s body become laced with green lightning.

Red hissed as a sharp pain stabbed through his skull, and he remembered that their friends – well, most of them – had magical powers of some sort. His skin burned at the memory.

Katsuki blocked his vision and leaned Red up against the cave wall.

“This is bad,” he mumbled, his hand tracing over the blooming tattoos on Red’s arm, “You’re getting your memories back too fast. I thought this would happen.”

Then Katsuki reached behind him and pulled out a long piece of shimmery black material.

“In order for me to do this, you can’t remember, and you’ll remember if you see what’s happening.” He lifted the fabric, “I need to put this over your eyes. It’s enchanted, so you won’t be able to see anything, and your hearing will be somewhat numbed as well.”

Red shrank back, “I don’t like that.”

“I know,” Katsuki said with sympathy, “I know, Red. But in order to save you, I have to stop you from getting your memories back. I have to put this on you.”

Red stared at the fabric. He really didn’t want to be blinded.

“Red.”

He looked up at Katsuki and saw everything.

“Do you trust me?”

Red reached out his hand to Katsuki’s, the one that was holding the fabric. He gripped it tight and grinned as best he could.

“With my life.”

Katsuki huffed out a breath, as though he had been holding it. He smiled back at Red and clutched Red’s hand with both of his.

“Good, because your life is in my hands now.”

Then they let go, and Red let Katsuki tie the fabric around his eyes, blindfolding him.

He was shocked at how dark it was, how muted everything else became. Red couldn’t tell whether his eyes were open or closed, and the sounds of battle that raged around him seemed as though they were far away, or coming from a tv in a different room, or underwater. 

Either way, it was disorienting as hell. 

He felt Katsuki’s hands leave the back of his head and his hand snatched out, grasping for something. He felt Katsuki’s shirt and gripped it.

“I’m right here,” Katsuki said. For some reason, his voice was as clear and calming as a favourite song, “I ain’t leaving you.”

Red nodded and let go of Katsuki’s shirt. He needed to work.

As Katsuki worked, Red tried very hard to not flinch, but it was difficult. He couldn’t see where Katsuki was going to touch him and he was already quite tense, given the situation. No matter how hard he tried, he flinched when Katsuki touched him. After a short while, Katsuki began to place his hand where he was going to touch Red, so he would be prepared for it.

That small action was calming, and it made Red more at ease. But it didn’t take away all of his anxieties.

Though muted, he could still hear the battle raging on around them. It was all shouts and swears, shots and glass breaking, swords clanging and fists connecting. It scared him that he couldn’t see it, didn’t know where they all were in proximity to him. The cavern was hot, and he heard a fire whoosh to life near him, perhaps the work of Shouto. He started to shake and sweat, suddenly growing too hot and too cold at the same time.

“You’re getting a bit of a fever,” Katsuki said, his hand on his left calf, “We’re about a quarter way through. You’re doing great, Red.”

Red nodded. The rock beneath him was hot, Katsuki’s hands were hot, the cavern was hot,the flames were hot, the fabric was hot, his sweat was hot, the air was –

“I’m going to be using a knife,” Katsuki warned, “I’ll tell you when I’m about to touch you with it, ok?”

Red nodded again and laid his head back against the hot rock. He felt Katsuki place his hand on his right shoulder, “Knife.”

Then he felt a coldness. He breathed a sigh of relief as it touched him, like a fresh breeze on a hot July day.

He realized that the knife was actually numbing the skin that it touched, because he could feel it cutting skin, but it didn’t hurt. It didn’t feel like anything, really. Kind of like a papercut before the pain.

After some time, maybe hours or maybe minutes, Red began to feel drowsy. He was exhausted, and felt as though the energy was being sapped from his body every time the knife touched. It didn’t help with the heat and the darkness. The sounds just kind of started to fade away….

His head began to fall forward and he snapped it up.

“You can sleep,” he heard Katsuki said.

“I don’t want to,” Red admitted, “I’m afraid I might not wake up again.”

“You will,” Katsuki promised. He felt a warm hand on his cheek, “I promise Red, you will wake up again.”

“I’m gonna hold you to that,” Red replied, smiling slightly. He began to drift off again, “If I don’t wake up...I’m gonna...kill you.”

“I know you will,” Katsuki laughed, “because if you don’t wake up, then I’m coming in after you.”

Red allowed himself a full smile, knowing that Katsuki was sincere. Amidst all the lies and mystery, Katsuki was sincere.

 


	29. Talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OOOOOH boy here it is!!!! This is the final chapter of the story – next one is an epilogue!!! We're almost there my dudes!!!
> 
> I know this chapter is short and I do apologize, it's really filled with exposition and dialogue and it's difficult to just write all that. I also had to keep going back and checking old chapters and notes to make sure I didn't contradict anything asdfjasijfersirgberip. Anyways, school starts tomorrow so I really wanted to get this up before summer officially ended (for me at least lol). I hope it was worth the wait.
> 
> Happy Reading!!!

The first thing he remembered was the moon.

Well, truthfully, he remembered a lot of things, but it all seemed jumbled together and didn’t make much sense.

The only thing that was clear was the moon, a sliver in the night sky. A beautiful face came into view and grinned.

“Feels familiar, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah,” he admitted, feeling as though he were floating yet strapped down, drifting away into unconsciousness, “It does.”

 

* * *

 

When he woke up again, the first thing he noticed was that it was cold. Very, very cold. There was nothing to cover his skin in the frigid night air, and he shivered.

The man from before appeared again, draping a blanket over him. 

“Where am I?” He managed, twisting his head to look at the trees surrounding them. He was still sluggish, but he was able to move.

“Not far from home. We’re almost done, just look at the sky.”

He decided to trust the man, as he felt as though he knew him. Well, he was almost certain he did, but his mind was quite scattered.

Instead, he focused on the stars. So many. Somewhere around 77, he fell asleep.

 

* * *

 

The third time he woke up, he found that he was in the opposite position as last time. He was warm, unlike before, covered in what seemed to be a comfy blanket. He was also looking up at a wooden ceiling with old wood beams. He was inside, and he was very comfortable.

He squinted at the bright sunlight pouring in through the open curtains, and wondered if Katsuki had left them like that on purpose, or if he had simply forgotten. The former seemed more likely.

_ Katsuki. _

The name brought many memories back, all jumbled. It was hard to make sense of it, almost impossible, but the name Katsuki had clarity.

Slowly, he sat up. As he looked around, he realized that he was in their bedroom.

“Katsuki?” He called out.

Almost immediately, Katsuki opened the bedroom door. He had dark circles under his eyes and seemed paler than usual, his eyes sunken a bit. But he grinned, and the rest didn’t seem to matter.

“Hey,” he said gently, coming to sit on the bed beside him, “How’re you feeling?”

“Head hurts,” he admitted, “and my skin itches. Not bad, all things considered.”

“That’s good. Do you remember anything?”

He nodded, “Yeah, but it’s all confused.”

“I’m not surprised,” Katsuki said, “Let’s start simple: what’s your name?”

He opened his mouth to respond but frowned.

Katsuki’s grin dropped, “Do you not remember?”

“No, I do,” he assured, “But there’s too many names. I’ve got Red, Kirishima, and Eijirou, and they all seem equally right.”

Katsuki sighed in relief, “They are right. Your full name is Kirishima Eijirou, and your nickname is Red.”

“I guess that makes sense,” he reasoned, “What do you call me?”

“All three,” Katsuki replied, “But you usually introduce yourself as Kirishima.”

“Okay, that seems right.”

“Good,” Katsuki said, “And what’s the last thing you remember, aside from waking up?”

“We were in a cave,” Kirishima recalled, “there was a bunch of us, but I couldn’t see anything. We were fighting someone...a king… the Kitsune King…?”

“Yeah,” Katsuki affirmed, “We didn’t take him down, even with all of us – we’re not that powerful. But we managed to hurt him and we got you out in time.”

“Is everyone okay?”

Katsuki smiled, “You just woke up from a coma with a fucked up memory and you’re asking about people you don’t entirely remember?”

“Of course! They’re our friends!”

His smile widened, “I know. You just blow me away sometimes.”

“It’s common decency, Katsuki,” Kirishima scoffed.

Katsuki laughed and to Kirishima, it was the best sound in the entire world. He felt less biased now, since he actually remembered a lot more sounds. 

After a moment, Katsuki’s smile dropped, and his eyes fell to his hands, “Do you...do you remember your death?”

“Yes. Stain. The knives. He did it to push you over the edge.” His eyes widened as he started to piece together more things, “Wait, Katsuki, you didn’t…?”

“No,” he assured, grabbing Kirishima’s hand and looking him in the eye, “I swear I didn’t. We used the regular method. We wouldn’t have done that if you hadn't thought about the knife.”

“But why did I lose all my memories?” Kirishima asked, “And how come I was so… I dunno,  _ weird _ ? I felt like I was half-dead.”

“You were,” Katsuki admitted, “You know how we cleave the skin from the soul to reset the damage? Well, because of your magic, your soul doesn’t reside in the normal places – it stays in the tattoos. When we removed the tattoos, we took your soul with them. And since neither myself nor Master Akiko had ever worked with your magic before, we didn’t really know what to do, and time was running short. So…” Katsuki sighed, “So Red was a temporary solution. We put whatever soul we could pull out from the tattoos into your body, but it wasn’t enough to fully bring you to life. You were in limbo; halfway between death and life. You never bled because you didn’t have any blood in your body, your heart pumped at a quarter of the normal rate, and other shit like that.”

“So I was  _ basically _   a zombie,” Kirishima said with a nod, “At least I didn’t eat any brains.”

Katsuki smiled a bit, “No, no brains eaten.”

“My memories then…” Kirishima began, still confused, “How does losing my soul translate to me losing all of my memories?”

“Your soul is your essence,” Katsuki explained, “And that changes as you grow and get new memories.”

“Like how Core Memories create Islands of Personality?”

Katsuki narrowed his eyes, “Are you trying to compare this to a fucking Disney movie?”

“Hey!” Kirishima defended, “It’s a great metaphor for the human psyche!”

Katsuki just scoffed, “Yeah, sure. Anyways, the older you get, the more your soul is made up of memories. Like, when you’re a baby, it’s 100% pure essence. At this age, it’s about 50-50. You die when your essence is replaced by memories.”

“Okay, I do remember you explaining this,” Kirishima said, “So…. half of my soul was tied to my tattoos, the half that was my memories?”

“A little more than half, but yeah.”

“What about the blood? I thought you replace the blood after cleansing it.”

“We do,” he said, “But the blood is like the physical bond of the essence. We couldn’t put it back in your body until we knew what to do.”

“And….the...my skin?”

“Jesus Christ, I’m so sorry you had to see that, Eijirou.”

“It’s okay. Well.” Kirishima wrinkled his nose a bit, “Kinda not, cuz it was really gross. But I guess it was my own fault since you told me not to go in there.”

“Yeah, I haven’t forgotten about that,” Katsuki said, not entirely pleased, “And the skin thing was the tattoos. We tried to remove one at a time but the magic was too complicated so we left it.”

“Good. I would rather die than lose my tattoos.”

“Well, you did die. And I might kill you again for talking to that kitsune.”

“Hey!” He argued, “I was confused, man. You were a hot, mysterious stranger who wasn’t quite human, Naozumi was a hot, mysterious stranger who wasn’t quite human. For a gay dude with no memories, it was quite the pickle.”

“Eijirou, I specifically told you to  _ not  _ talk to him. Like, I literally could not have been any fucking clearer.”

“Okay, good point,” Kirishima admitted. He raised a finger then, “ _ But _ I’m also not one to just blindly listen to orders, and you should be thankful that Red was as obedient as he was.”

Katsuki scowled, “And you should be thankful that I didn’t listen to my master when she told me you would do this shit. Because you know what she wanted to do, Eijirou? She wanted to lock Red up in her shrine. That was your alternative, you ungrateful little shit.”

Kirishima opened up his mouth to reply about how that wouldn’t be  _ so  _ bad, but then he remembered how much Akiko creeped him out with her cold, dead eyes. Slowly, he pulled his lips in around his teeth and clamped his mouth shut.

Katsuki laughed, loud and jovially. After a moment, Kirishima joined in. He didn’t remember everything, not yet, but he was pretty sure he hadn’t laughed like that since he had been alive the first time. 

“As annoying as you are,” Katsuki said once he caught his breath, “I’m glad you’re back.”

“Me too,” Kirishima replied. Then he leaned forward and embraced Katsuki. It wasn’t long when he felt his love’s arms wrap around him, warm and steady, feeling as though there was no other place in the world he was meant to be. “Me too.”


End file.
